


To Love a Ninja: The Collection

by LibraryRose



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012)
Genre: Action & Romance, Choose Your Own Adventure, Choose Your Own Character, Choose Your Own Ending, Eventual Romance, Gender Neutral Romance, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Other, Reader becomes mutant Turtle, Reader-Insert, Self-Insert, otome style
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2019-01-03
Packaged: 2019-03-13 07:35:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 30,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13565859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LibraryRose/pseuds/LibraryRose
Summary: Your mentor is gone, kidnapped by the Kraang.  When you are mutated into a turtle, you are taken in by the fabled Ninja Turtles. One of them is chosen to guard you day and night, at least until the retro-mutagen can be formulated. But now there is more to lose than just your mentor as you start to fall for your ninja.Who will you trust to keep you safe?Leonardo: Stoic and as fierce as the windRaphael: Volatile and as wild as fireDonatello: Intelligent and as strong as a MountainMichelangelo: Sanguine and as resilient as the forest.(Aside from the prologue, the story changes depending on the turtle you choose.)





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Tweaked the story a tad.

 

* * *

You woke up in an unfamiliar place with your hands bound together at your wrists, suspended by a meat hook over a vat of glowing green stuff. Your first instinct was to try and wriggle yourself free but you fought against it, hanging the air was a lot better than falling into whatever that green crap was. You decided to calm yourself by recounting the events that lead you to your current situation.

That night you had been snooping around your mentor’s office, looking for clues about his mysterious disappearance. He was one of many scientists to go missing in the past month, and when you called the police they basically told you to shove off with their token answer of “we’ll look into it”.

Unable to wait for the cops, you decided to investigate on your own, which lead your mentor’s lab where you were attacked and captured by several armed robots. You stood no chance of escaping even if you did know how to fight, which you didn’t. You took a blow to the back of the head and passed out.

That explained being tied up but not the green vat of glowing liquid beneath you. The swirling hues of blue and green captured your attention, it was soothing in a way, like a lava lamp. You shook away that thought, what were you thinking? That stuff was probably as acidic as it smelled. You tried to move but your body wouldn’t respond which told you that you’d been hanging there for quite a long time.

“Sorry, professor.” You said. “I really wanted to help you.” You said. The professor had been like a father to you since you’d come to know him three years ago. You were fascinated by his teachings and decided to apprentice under him, follow in his footsteps. You wanted to help people, cure them, and do something good for humanity. So much for that dream.

“Kraang, tell Kraang that the one called _____ is in the state known as being awake.” You heard a robotic voice say. Glancing around you found the source of the voice, it had come from one of the two robots, standing beside the vat of green stuff.

“Let me go, you overgrown tin cans!” you yelled and the Kraang bots, as you cleverly called them, drew two odd looking guns and aimed them at you. You swallowed against the lump in your throat, perhaps name-calling wasn’t the best way to handle your situation. “Or you know, I can totally hang around if you want.”  

“If you can make lame jokes then I guess your fine.” You heard as a new person entered the room, you felt a sense of relief as you recognized them. It was Irma, a girl you knew from school, she was always hanging around with April and Casey.

“Irma! Thank god, help me.” You said and it dawned on you that if Irma was your savior then surely the Kraang bots would be bothered by her presence.  

“Help you?” Irma said, “No, you have it backwards. You are going to help me.” She said. “You are going to help me destroy the Ninja Turtles.

“What? Are you crazy? The Ninja Turtles? They are a myth.”  You said. “You honestly think there are humanoid turtles running around protecting the city?” You said. “Next you’re gonna tell me that there’s a giant alligator living in the sewers.” you scoffed.

“It doesn’t matter what you believe because you are going to help me whether you want to or not.” Irma said.

“Why the hell would I help you?” you asked and without missing a beat Irma’s body unfolded like one of those paper fortunetellers, revealing her true form. In the center of her robot body was a pink brain, like the ones sitting inside the other robots.

“I am Kraang Prime, the ultimate life form and I will compensate you for your cooperation.” He said.

“No way!” you struggled, even if the turtles weren’t real, you knew that they were the good guys, you weren’t about to help the enemy. “Nothing you can offer me will make me help you.”

“Is that so? What if I offer to return your mentor to you?” He said and it struck a nerve with you. The professor helped you when no one else would, you basically owed him your life. What could you do but agree?

“Fine.” You said "What do I have to do?" You asked.

"That's the easy part.” Kraang said then turned toward the two robots next to him. “Add the turtle DNA to the formula.” He said.

You watched as one of the Kraang bots added some sort of serum to the green stuff you were hanging over. When it was done, Kraang Prime yanked a lever protruding from a computer next to the vat and you began to descend toward the green stuff.

“Hey, can we talk about this.” You said. “don't you think I will do a better job if I am alive?”

“Don't worry, we aren't going to kill you.” Kraang Prime said. “Though, this process will make you want to die.” He laughed and watched with joy as you were submerged.   

It had the consistency of Jell-O only it ate away at your body like acid. You screamed, allowing the green stuff to find its way into your mouth where it made its way into your lungs. There you were caught between drowning and being burned alive, and you felt like your whole body was being ripped to shreds.

After a few moments the pain began to subside and found that the rope that had previously bound you had disintegrated and you were able to swim to the top of the vat. You pulled yourself over the rim and were sent tumbling to the ground at Kraang’s feet. 

You coughed up what remained of the green stuff and pushed yourself up off the ground.

No! You changed your mind, your mentor had always told you to fight for what was right. He wouldn’t want to be saved at the cost of you losing yourself.

Kraang looked down at you and smiled, and you instantly hated that smile. Adrenaline coursed through your body and you jammed an elbow into Kraang’s pink face. He squealed and fell back, giving you a chance to run, which you gladly took.

“After that them!” you heard Kraang prime say but something in that green stuff must have done something to you, you felt light on your feet and stronger. Spurred on by this fact you made your way out of the warehouse and through the streets of New York.  You hurried through alley ways and familiar back streets in order to lose the Kraang bots that were after you.

After a few moments, once you were sure you had lost them you slumped against a wall behind a dumpster. With the adrenaline rush over you couldn’t find the energy to move anymore. Hopefully you’d be safe until you woke again.

Then the world went black.

* * *

 “Hey, guys look.” You heard a faint voice between your bouts of consciousness. “It’s a mutant turtle.” Said the voice.

“Are they alive?” asked another voice, this one dripping with authority

 “I think so.” The first voice said.

 “Mikey, don’t touch them.” Another voice, this one was gentler than the others.

 “Let’s bring them back to the lair” the voice belonging to Mikey said

 At this point you were coherent enough to push yourself up off the ground. You glanced around and discovered that you were in the middle of an alleyway surrounded by, four mutant turtles. You couldn’t believe it. It was them, they did exist. “The Ninja Turtles.” You said.

 “How do you know about us?” the authoritarian turtle asked, his eyes were cautious and you could tell he wouldn’t settle for anything less than the truth.

“There are rumors floating around about you guys but no one believes them.” You said. “I didn’t… at first. I mean come on, four crime-fighting humanoid turtles. It’s a little ridiculous.”

 “Ridiculous?” the red banded turtle, who hadn’t said a word since you woke up Said.  “You’re one to talk.” 

 “What does that mean?” you asked, bristling at the challenging air he was giving off. You pointed at him, insult at the ready but it died in your throat when you noticed the shade of your skin. Your arm was green and scaly, you followed the length of your arm back toward your body and shot to your feet. In addition to your green arms you had two legs to match and a vibrant unmarred plastron.

Your breath began to quicken as you ran a hand around to your back to feel a hard substance. Oh no. You ran toward a window in the alley and caught your reflection. You touched your face. You were half turtle and half human.   “I’m a… I’m a turtle.” You said.

“You mean you didn’t know?” the gentle voice asked, his worry filled eyes hidden beneath a purple mask.

“No, this isn’t right. What the heck was in that stuff?” you felt a panic run through you, everything crashed in around you, your lost mentor, the transformation, the discovery of the Ninja Turtles. You felt dizzy and before another moment passed you fainted, but not before you heard the blue banded turtle say.

“Nice going, Raph.”

* * *

When you woke up, you discovered that you were on a sofa in the middle of an abandoned subway station. Everything about the place felt homey, welcoming and warm, well, except for the smell.

 Suddenly, the sofa dipped behind you and you turned to see the only turtle you could identify, “Mikey.” The way he was smiling seemed to make you feel secure. Like you could let all of your stress melt away. 

“How’d you guess my name?” he asked.

“I heard the blue turtle say it.” You said.

“Mikey, give them some space.” Speak of the devil.

“Sorry about that.” Said the turtle in blue. “I know this is a lot to take in but you don’t have to worry, we’re the good guys. We’ll help you.” He said. “My name is Leonardo.”

“Leo-nardo.” You tested his name on your lips and he smiled. “The red turtle, as you would put it, is Raphael.” He said, “He’s got something he wants to say to you.” Leonardo said, but the tone of his voice told you there was a threat hidden behind his words.

Raphael grumbled and came forward. “Sorry.” He said but you didn’t remember him doing anything that he needed to apologize for. Still you accepted his apology with a nod.

“Hi, I’m Donatello.” The purple banded turtle said. “Am I right to assume that, given the fact that you didn’t realize that you were a turtle, you were once human?” Donatello asked.

“Yeah. Then I fell into this green Jell-O stuff and when I woke up I was like this.” You said, unsure of just how much to tell them. Would they help you if they knew that Kraang had done this to you or would they assume you were up to something. You couldn't risk it so you didn't disclose any more.

 “Fascinating.” He said and you were kind of put off by it but ignored it, he was obviously “Fascinated” for science reasons. “Well, don’t worry, I am working on a retro-mutagen, it should change you back.” He said. That was good to hear.

“Nice to meet you all. My name is ____.”  you said 

“Well, _____ welcome to our humble home.” You turned around to see another mutant, this one was a rat, and looking into his eyes you could see just how wise this one was. “My name is Hamato, Yoshi.” He gave a bow. “You may call me Splinter.”

“Hello, Splinter.” You said then turned toward Donatello. “How long will the retro-mutagen take?” you asked, you wanted to be human again as soon as possible.

Donatello rubbed his hand over the back of his smooth head, he was wearing a guilty look. “It’s still in the early stages of development.”

“How early?” you asked.

“Research.” He admitted.

You felt your heart drop at that simple word. “What am I supposed to do? I can’t go home like this.” You said. “I’ll be locked up, or worse! Experimented on.” The panic in your voice cause each of the turtles to take a step toward you. You could only guess that they knew what you were feeling. You felt guilty for panicking when they were probably stuck in turtle form indefinitely.

“Calm yourself.” Splinter said. “I suggest that you stay here with us until we can deal with your situation.” He said. “That is, if you want to.”

“Thank you for your kind offer.” You said, “But I don’t think…” you trailed off as something crossed your mind. The turtles could change you back and then you could work on rescuing your mentor.  “Okay.” You said.

“Good, then one of my sons will be assigned to watch over you.” He said and you got the feeling that he expected you to pick one. You turned toward the four turtles.

Leonardo watch you stoically but seemed to be eager to help.

Mikey was practically jumping up and down to get your attention.

Donatello was looking at you the way your mentor looked at one of his test subjects.

Raphael had his arms crossed over his plastron, seemingly annoyed with the whole thing.

“I choose…”

 


	2. Raphael 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raphael is volatile and as wild as fire. He’s intimidating, sarcastic and makes fun of you...a lot. Still, underneath his crude nature is a kind and passionate heart. 
> 
> But as the saying goes: If you play with fire you’re gonna get burned.

 

* * *

You sighed and decided on the Turtle who looked less likely to bother you with too many questions, your eyes landed on the emerald orbs of Raphael. “I choose Raphael.” He let out a sigh of annoyance and stalked off to his room.

You glanced toward the others, unsure. Did he want you to follow him? Splinter, gave you a kind smile, answering your unspoken question. You hurried after Raphael and cringed when you heard Donatello say, in a hushed tone, “Hope she’ll be okay.”

When you reached the hall you caught Raphael ducking into his room but he left the door open for you. You felt a tinge of regret for picking the dismissive red-banded Turtle. Here you were, newly mutated and in the company of strangers, the least he could do was be a bit more hospitable. 

You sighed and crossed the hall before walking through Raphael’s door, his room was surprisingly tidy for that of a teenage boy, or turtle as it were. Along his walls were a few torn movie posters, one of which was of your favorite guilty pleasure movie. You were surprised that anyone else would even like it. That made you feel a little better. Off to the side was a drum set, and behind that was a stereo resting on a makeshift table. The aesthetic was minimalist meets grunge.

“You got a problem?” he said sharply and that’s when you noticed he’d been sitting on his bed watching you. You began to wonder if you’d made a face to warrant the harsh tone he was giving you.

“No.” You said. “I like your room.”

“I wouldn’t care if you didn’t.” he said flatly.

You glanced back toward the door, was it too late to ask for someone else? Your thoughts were interrupted when you felt something but up against your new turtle feet. A small tortoise looked up at you with bright eyes, he was cute so you reached your hand down in an attempt to pet it but it snapped at you. “Gah!” You stumbled back and fell into the drum set.

Time seemed to stand still as a crescendo resonated through the room. A cymbal landed on top of your head and you winced, chancing a look in Raphael’s direction. This new body would take some getting used to.

“Geez, what a pain.” He said, getting up out of the bed to help you up. Once you were on your feet he pointed toward a beanbag chair in the corner, “Just go sit over there and don’t touch anything.” He said before turning his attention to rebuilding his drum set.

“I’m sorry.” You said, plopping down into the chair as you were instructed, the tortoise who’d startled you gave you a smug look before crawling into its bed. The word _Fragile_ was scrawled on the front of the bed, fragile? Yeah right.

“You know,” he said after a few minutes. “I find it hard to believe that you just happened to turn into a turtle like us. I mean every other person who’s come into contact with the mutagen has become horribly disfigured and disgusting.” He said, not noticing the underlying complement he’d given you. Did that mean you weren’t disgusting?

He placed the final drum in its proper place and turned his attention back to you “So, what’s your deal?”

“My deal?” you asked.

“Yeah, how did you end up being mutated?” he asked. 

“I’m an apprentice and my mentor was kidnapped. I was out looking for clues when I was…exposed to this green Jell-O stuff. I woke up in the alley where you guys found me.” You said.

“Idiot, that neighborhood is Purple Dragon territory, you could have been attacked or worse.” He said and behind his tone you could sense a genuine concern for your well-being. “You should have gone to the police.”

“I did.” You said. “They said they’d look into it. I couldn’t wait on them so I had to investigate on my own.”

“Great idea, genius, now look at you.” He said, gesturing to your new form.

“You don’t understand. The professor is like a father to me. When I moved here I had nothing and I was going to end up on the streets. The professor helped me get into the science program at the university, he helped me find a place to live. There’s no doubt in my mind that wouldn’t be here if not for him. I’d risk my life to save him.” You caught a hint of empathy behind Raphael’s eyes, was it because he had a mentor like that too? Perhaps Splinter?

“Even so, you had no business being out there by yourself, you’re lucky that the worst thing that happened to you was getting mutated.” He said, “The Purple Dragons are no joke.”

“I walk those streets all the time by myself and nothing has ever happened. I’m not really worried about it.” You said.

“Oh really? Okay, Hotshot.” He said before standing up, “Show me what you would do if you were, by random chance, attacked by one of them.” He took a stance in the center of his room. If you didn’t know better you’d think he’d fit right in with that no good street gang. “Pretend I’m going to attack you.” He said.

“But that’s not real.” You said. “If I don’t actually feel threatened then-” You were cut off when he grabbed your wrist tightly.

He tossed you down on his bed with ease and pinned your hands down on either side of your head, the malice in his eyes was unmistakable. You struggled and tried to kick him off but couldn’t. He was ten times stronger, there was nothing you could do. You shut your eyes tightly, too scared to move.

Raphael let you go and stood up again and you opened your eyes to see him standing there with a disappointed look on his face. “Real enough for you?” he asked.

“Yes.” You breathed.

“You said you’d be fine, what exactly was your plan for getting out of that one?” he asked. “An attack is an attack, real or not.” He said. “You need to fight like your life depends on it because, out there,” he gestured to the world above, “it usually does.”

The room fell silent as you let his words sink in. New York had been in a state of decline ever since the Purple Dragons and the Foot Clan started vying for control of the city. Aside from that, you were living in near the college, reports of sexual assault were commonplace at your university.

“Now, get up, I need to be up early.” He said, shaking you from your thoughts as he yanked you up off his bed. He hopped onto his bed and turned off the jack-o-lantern lamp above his bed, leaving you in the dark.

“Hey, wait, where am I supposed to sleep.” You asked.

“Let me think, is that my problem? Ooh, no sorry. It’s not.” He said before rolling over in his bed so his back was toward you. You let out a huff of frustration. Why did you think picking him would be a good idea, again?

You thought of sleeping on the beanbag chair but it was way too small so you decided to lie on the floor. The rug wasn’t too bad and actually provided an, albeit minuscule, bit of warmth.  You rested your head on the crook of your arm and stared at the sleeping tortoise, hopefully it wouldn’t murder you in your sleep.

You rolled over so that your back was toward Raphael and sighed softly resigning yourself to your fate when suddenly, a pillow and blanket landed on top of you. Glancing behind you, you saw Raphael shift back into his previous position. Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all.  You wrapped the blanket around you and nuzzled your snout into the pillow.

Taking in a long whiff you suddenly felt secure, the scent was spicy and sweet, like cinnamon. You relaxed and the events of the day finally caught up to you so it didn’t take long for sleep to claim you.

* * *

The next morning you woke up to the sound of the tortoise munching on a leaf, turning to check on Raphael only to discover that he was gone. You gathered the pillow and blanket he’d lent to you and fixed his bed before going out to find him.

The lair was silent except for a constant thumping sound coming from beyond the hallway. You followed it and found yourself standing in front of, what could only be described as a small gym. Raphael was in the corner ramming his fists into a punching bag. You were captivated by his concentration and the way his muscles moved with each hit.

You wandered into the gym and screwed up your courage, all night you’d been plagued by visions of just how vulnerable you were. “Um, Raphael.” You asked.

His movements stopped instantly and he turned to face you. “What?”

“How um… how exactly would I get out of that situation?”

“What situation?” he asked.

“You know, if I was pinned down by someone. How would I get out of that?” You could tell he wasn’t expecting that by the way he flinched. “Sorry, dumb question. There’s no way, is there?” he didn’t answer you, instead he swept his leg out and you fell backwards onto the mat. He climbed on top of you and pinned you down again, his hands wrapped around your wrists with your hands on either side of your head.

“Keep your feet planted on the ground, never leave them flat, you need leverage.” He said. “Now hook your right foot behind mine.” You struggled a bit but managed to do as he told you. “Now your hands, slide your right hand up toward your left side.” You did and you felt his weight shift slightly, his base was gone. “Good. Now roll to your left.” The moment you did you found that you were now on top of him, free to attack his face if you wanted to.

“Whoa.” You breathed as you stood up, offering Raphael your hand to help him up.

“It’s not that big a deal.” He said, ignoring your hand in order to jump to a stand. Show off.

“You asked what my plan was, it was to give up.” You finally admitted, “You are stronger and bigger, I was too scared to fight back because I didn’t want to make the situation worse.”

“Don’t say that. I don’t care who your attacker is. _Never_ be afraid to fight back.” He said, his sharp words causing you to flinch as if he’d hit you. “If you fight long enough you will eventually get a chance to get away.” He said.

“Get away? Shouldn’t I fight them so they learn not to attack innocent people?” You asked.

“No. If you aren’t a fighter like me and my brothers then your main goal is survival.” He said.

You let his words sink in and thought back on last night. You were in your mentor’s lab, back turned toward the door. You didn’t even hear the Kraang until it was too late. One of them grabbed you from behind, you were completely defenseless. And you got the feeling that it was your chance to escape. If you knew any basic self-defense then you wouldn’t be a turtle now.

“What if you are attacked from behind?” you asked. “Like if they grab you around your body with your arms pinned at your sides?”

“Easy.” He said then wrapped you up in the attack position you described. “Grab my arms.” He said, “Then drop your weight.” You did as you were instructed and dangled from his arms as you waited for him to continue. “Now you can stomp on my foot then kick me in the groin.” You lifted your foot to do just that and he released you, causing you to lose balance so that he could pin you on the ground again.

“Hey!” you protested then he pinned your arms down like he did earlier. He wanted you to show him if you remembered what he taught you. Okay. You hooked your foot around his and dragged your arm up, twisting your body so that you were on top of him. You went to punch him in the face but he caught your hand at the last moment. Then frowned as he studied your fist. “What?”

“Move your thumb to the side, it shouldn’t be over your fingers like that.” He said

You looked at your fist and corrected yourself before punching the air in a test jab. “Cool.”

“Now don’t get ahead of yourself. It takes more than knowing the moves to get away from an attacker. You have to practice until the moves become a reflex.” You nodded and got up off the ground with him. “If you want, I can show you more.” He said before returning to his punching bag.

“Really?” you asked.

“I mean, it would be a huge pain but I think everyone should have a basic understanding of self-defense.” He said.

“Okay, then.” You smiled. And just like that you found something that would make your time with Raphael a little more bearable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are always appreciated. Have a lovely day and I will be posting Mikey, Leo and Donnie's parts soon. See you then.
> 
> E-rose


	3. Michelangelo 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Michelangelo: Sanguine and as resilient as the forest.
> 
> He’s happy, fun and loves his pranks. He’ll do just about anything to make you happy. But is he hiding something behind that smile of his?
> 
> It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt.

* * *

You glanced over at Michelangelo and smiled, he gave off an air of childishness that made you confident that he wouldn’t ask too many questions about your transformation. “I choose Mikey.” You said and the second his name left your lips he scooped you up into the air and hugged you tightly.

“Yeah, boi.” He said, before setting you down again, you felt dizzy but it didn’t last long. “Everyone wants to hang out with Mikey, cause, let’s face it, I’m the best.” He taunted his brothers before turning his attention back toward you. “We are gonna have so much fun.” His jovial attitude was making you feel giddy.

“Calm down, Michelangelo.” Splinter said. “____ has had a long day, perhaps a night of rest would be appreciated.”

You had to agree with that, with all that’s happened in the span of several hours you were surprised you were even standing. Michelangelo looked toward you and nodded in agreement. “Come on, Neo-Turtle.” He said, grabbing your hand in order to lead you away, hopefully to a nice warm bed.

“Neo-Turtle?” you asked.

“Yeah, it’s your mutant name.” He said as if it giving someone a new name was the most natural thing in the world. “Get it? Because neo means new and you are a new turtle.”

“Cool, it’s like a superhero name.” you said, and you didn’t know why but you felt honored to receive a nickname from him.

“Exactly.” He said then came to a stop in front of a door, “Welcome to Casa Di Angelo.” He said and with a flourish opened the door.

Toys. Toys everywhere, they littered the ground like a miniature carnival. Scanning the room, something caught your eye, a toy from your childhood. “I can’t believe you have one of these.” You said and scooped it up. “I had one of these when I was a kid.” You sat down on the ground and played with it. “Awesome, it still works.” You smiled.

“Yes!” Michelangelo said, “I did it.” You looked up at him, did what? “I made you smile.” He answered the question that was seemingly written on your face.

Michelangelo flopped down on his bed causing a mountain of plushies to tumble to the ground. “So, you’re a scientist?” he asked.

“An apprentice.” You corrected. “My mentor was kidnapped. That’s how I became…this.” you tried to say _this_ with as little disdain as possible because you didn’t want to offend your guardian. “I got jumped by some bad guys and when I woke up, I was like this.” Oops. The whole reason you’d picked Michelangelo to begin with was so that he wouldn’t ask too many questions, and here you were volunteering the information. You had to be more careful, his innocent nature was dangerous.

“I’m sorry about your mentor. That must be rough, if something happened to Master Splinter I don’t know what I’d do.” He said.

“The professor was like a father to me.” You said. “I would have been homeless if not for him. He helped me get into the university and helped me find a place to live. I owe him my life.” you frowned and tinkered around with the toy anxiously.

Michelangelo placed a bandaged hand over yours, in an act of comfort. “Don’t worry. Me and my bros will help you.”

“Are you guys really Ninja?” you asked.

“Yep.” He said. “We’ve practically mastered every move there is. Don’t tell my brothers but I’m the best one, I just hold back because I don’t want them to feel bad.” Remembering the dangerous air that Raphael gave off, you chuckled, at the idea of Michelangelo decking his scary brother.

After a few moments of silence, Michelangelo asked, “Do people really talk about us, up there?”

“Sort of. I mean people think you guys are normal guys, trying to save the city.” You watched him cringe at the word _Normal_. That wasn’t what you meant. “I just mean, no one believes that you are mutant turtles.” You said, though it didn’t really help your point.

“Man, I bet if we had the chance to show people who we really are they’d accept us.” He said, and as much as you wanted to reassure the young turtle, you knew you’d only be lying to him. The majority of humans weren’t understand or accepting.

Your eyes fell to the ground and you noticed something else, “Oh my god, is that…” you trailed off, climbing over a few toys to grab the object of your attention. “It is. A Wingnut comic book.” You lifted it up in the air and smiled. “I love these, I have every single one. I even have a signed copy of the limited edition first issue.”

“Are you serious?” Michelangelo fell to the ground next to you and placed his hands over yours as they gripped the comic book. “Dude. I gotta check it out.” He said. “Come on.”

“Wait, right now?” you asked. It was late and Splinter did say that you should rest, a sentiment you had to agree with.  

“Yeah.” He said, “Please.” He flashed the most adorable puppy dog eyes you’d ever seen. You felt your resolve crumbling and, from the devious look in his eyes, you could tell that he knew it, too.

“Okay, fine.” You said. Besides, if you were going to live with the turtles for a while, getting a few things from your apartment was a must.

* * *

You hurried through the darkened streets of New York with Michelangelo taking the lead, he was nimble and quick on his feet. You, on the other hand were still getting used to your new clunky body. Sensing this, Michelangelo slowed down for you, which you appreciated.

“It’s this one.” You said, when you finally reached your building. You lead him through an alleyway and pointed up at a corner apartment on the third floor. “That one.”

“Next stop, Neo-Turtle’s secret hideout!” he said, scooping you up before positioning you so that you were clinging to his caprice. And before you could ask him what he was up to, he jumped.

The sensation of flying filtered through your entire body as he hopped up the fire escape. With each bounce you could feel your stomach dance at the weightlessness, it was thrilling. After the third jump he stopped, the tails of his orange mask tickled your cheek as he turned his head to check on you. “Still there?”

“Yeah.” You said and he set you down before pulling the window open, he turned and gave you a look, probably questioning your security. “It’s pretty safe, everyone knows that this area is low income.” You said. “So no one tries to rob anyone here.”

You stepped inside and heard a metallic sound, it was familiar and Michelangelo must have thought so too because, in an instant he was by your side. He shoved you behind him and suddenly he became focused and dangerous. His eyes seemed to glow white in the darkness as he drew his weapons with extreme focus.

“It is the turtle known as Michelangelo.” A Kraang droid said as it rounded the corner. You glared, it was holding your notebook, the one where you kept all of your scientific findings. It was one of the things you’d hoped to collect on this trip.

“My notebook!” you pointed and leapt away from Michelangelo in an attempt to retrieve it but he yanked you back behind him. He spun his nunchaku as more droids filtered into the room.

“Give us the one known as _____.” One of the droids demanded.   

“If you want Neo-Turtle, you’re gonna have to get though me first.” Michelangelo said shoving you hard to the left where you landed behind the couch. Not the best form of cover but it was better than nothing.

“Booyakasha!” you heard Michelangelo shout as he leapt into battle. You lifted your head to peek over the couch.  Michelangelo skillfully dodged the laser blasts that the droids fired at him and jumped into the air only to come down on the droid that was holding your notebook.

The droid fell to the ground, causing your notebook fly off into the kitchen. You gasped and sank down behind the couch again, you had to get it. You crawled across the carpet and paused as a stray laser flew past your head, barely grazing you. You felt the heat it gave off, instant death.

You had to get cover. You spotted your coffee table. It wasn’t much but its glass top might provide a good enough reflective shield. You scurried over to it and tipped it over so that you could crawl behind it safely. It was heavy but the kitchen wasn’t too far away.

While you crawled, dragging the coffee table along with you, you heard several laser blasts bounce off of its surface. Good. Once you reached the bar leading into the kitchen you ditched the table and hurried over to your notebook. You grabbed it and were just about to open it when a laser cut through it, leaving giant sizzling hole through its center.

You looked up at the offender and discovered that a droid was hovering above you. “You are to return to the place that is being the hiding place of Kraang.” The Droid reached down to grab you but stopped abruptly when a blade pierced its metallic head.

“I don’t think so.” Michelangelo said before taking the bots head clean off with the sickle of his kusarigama. The squid like alien, in the droid’s stomach skittered away, leaving you in the silence of your once pristine apartment.

You lifted your notebook up, maybe some of your notes could be salvaged but that idea died when, what was left of your notebook disintegrated in your hand.

“Are you okay? He didn’t get you, did he?” Michelangelo asked.

“Yeah, right where it hurts.” You said sarcastically, grabbing at the dust that was once your notebook.

“I wonder what they want with you.” he said.

“Beats me.” You lied, of course you had an idea, though Mikey didn’t need to know that.

“We should get back to the lair, I didn’t think anyone was actively hunting for you.” A look of guilt plagued his features for an instant before fading behind his usual smile. “You might want to grab what you can. I don’t think we should come back here for a while.”

“Right.” You hurried to your room and filled a backpack with a few things before heading back to the lair with Mikey.

* * *

The two of you made it back to the lair without incident, which you were glad for, you were practically running on empty by now. Mikey lead you back to his room and sat down on his bed. “That was some pretty cool fighting you did back there.” You said. “I’m glad I picked you.”

He smiled at your comment and let out a sigh, “I’m sorry about your apartment.” He said.

“I was thinking of going for a new ascetic anyway, swish cheese sounds pretty cool.” Your attempt at a joke wasn’t lost on him and he chuckled.

“Oh, and I brought you something.” You smiled and turned to your bag, digging through it to produce a plastic case. “To thank you for saving me before.” You turned and handed the item to him. Inside the plastic case was your limited edition signed Wingnut issue one comic book.

“Are you serious?” Michelangelo took the comic and handled it like it was worth a million dollars. “No, I can’t take this.” he said, “besides, you don’t owe me anything.”

“Please, I want you to have it.” You said. “As a sign of friendship.”

“Are we friends?”

“Of course we are.” You said.

“Awesome.” He said, then put the comic book on the shelf above his bed. “Alright, today has been more than epic and I am tired, how about you?”

“Dead tired.” You admitted.

Michelangelo plopped down on his bed, scooching back against the wall so that there was room for you. Was he serious? “Um, Mikey, I don’t think it’s a good idea to share a bed.”

“Why not? Did you want to sleep on the floor?” he asked.

“Well, no, but…”

“Just come on.” He said, yanking you by the wrist, causing you to fall. He caught you in his arms and pulled you tightly against his body. You felt warm and secure. You’d never been spooned before but it was amazing. “Hmm, you are so cuddly, Neo-Turtle.” He said as he rested his chin against the top of your head. “And you smell good, too.” You blushed.

“Uh, Mikey?” you tried to ask him what he was up to but realized that he was already fast asleep. Maybe he wasn’t up to anything after all, he did seem innocent enough. You smiled. Who were you to complain, you were comfortable, after all. You took a breath and let sleep claim you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What toy did you have when you were growing up? Mine was a Fisher Price record player.
> 
> Leave a comment and don't forget to give me those sweet sweet Kudos. Thank you, lovely readers and see you in the next one. (Leo's up next)


	4. Leonardo 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leonardo: Stoic and as fierce as the wind.  
> He’s confident, levelheaded and courageous. He'll protect you with his life. But is he really as fearless as they say? And as you start to fall for him you stand to lose more than just your mentor.
> 
> And as the saying goes: Beware, the calm before the storm.

* * *

This whole situation was a lot for you to take in, you could feel the pressure of stress building up in your stomach. Leonardo, sensing this, leaned forward and placed a gentle hand on your shoulder. You looked up into his weightless gaze and, seeing the wisdom behind his eyes, felt restored.

“I choose Leonardo.” You declared, earning an obnoxious groan of disappointment from Michelangelo.

“Good, saves me the hassle. Babysitting is not my thing.” Raphael said before stomping off, to what you assumed was his bedroom after hearing a door slam shut. Good thing you didn’t pick him, he was way too standoffish for your taste.

“I better get started on that retro-mutagen.” Donatello said before wandering off, muttering to himself. You’d seen that tons of times when your mentor was running calculations in his mind.

Suddenly, Michelangelo pounced on you, wrapping an arm around your shoulder, “Dude, Neo-Turtle, are you sure you want to stick with Leo?”

“Neo-Turtle?” Was he talking about you?

“Yeah, it’s your mutant name. Pretty cool, huh?” You didn’t know how you felt about being assigned a name but as far as names went it could have been worse. You shuttered at the thought of your last nickname…yeah, It could have been much worse.

“Mikey, leave ____ alone.” Leonardo said, peeling his brother’s arm away from your shoulder. “It’s been a long day, I’m sure they would like to get some rest.” You had to admit, rest sounded really good.

“Alright, but we are sooo hanging out later.” Michelangelo said. “Good night, Neo-Turtle.” He said, humming as he bounded down the same hall as Raphael.

“I’m sorry about that.” Leonardo said. “It isn’t often that we have company.” He explained.

“It’s okay.” You said. Truthfully, you didn’t mind the other turtles, they seemed really nice. Well, except for Raphael, he was intimidating. Your thoughts were interrupted by the shrill scream of a teakettle.

“I was getting ready to have some tea before you woke up, would you like to join me?” he asked but you weren’t too sure. “it might help you to relax a bit.” He added, trying to coax you, which worked.

You followed Leonardo to the kitchen and when you arrived you sat down at the makeshift dining table. You watched as Leonardo moved elegantly and with purpose, gathering the things necessary to make tea.

 “How did you end up…” he trailed off, and you could see the wheels in his head turning. He was probably trying to figure out a way to put forth his question delicately, “like  _that_.” Only to fail. Miserably. You brushed it off, at least he tried.

 “I fell into this green ooze while I was looking for clues as to the whereabouts of my missing mentor.” You said, unsure of just how much information you should divulge. “He was one of the many scientists to go missing this month.” Leonardo nodded, apparently he was familiar with the disappearances. 

“Was your mentor working with the mutagen?” Crap, you weren’t ready for that question and you got the feeling that Leonardo would be able to see through any lie you could tell, so you didn’t.

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“I only ask because, while my brothers and I were investigating, we discovered that each of the scientist had one thing in common: access to the mutagen.” He made his way over to the table with two mismatched tea cups.

He set a cup in front of you and as the aroma filled your scenes, you noticed that, since becoming a turtle your senses had heightened “What is this?” you asked.

“It’s chamomile tea.”

“Oh.” You couldn’t wait to try it. You reached across the table for the shaker labeled  _sugar_  only to be stopped by a green finger on the back of your hand. You gave Leonardo a puzzled look.

“Try it first.” He said. Was he nuts? Tea was too bitter without sugar. He gave you a look that said  _Trust me_ , so you decided to indulge him.

You took a careful sip and instantly felt a sense of warmth. Breezy spring days, warm summer nights, cashmere autumns and cozy winters. “Wow.” You said. “I didn’t know tea could be so good.”

“Making tea is an art. Master Splinter taught me how to do it.” Leonardo said.

“He must mean a lot to you.” You said.

“He’s our father, there isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for him.” He said before falling into silence to enjoy his tea.

* * *

 Leonardo led you through the lair and down the hall Raphael and Michelangelo had ventured down earlier. He stopped at his door and paused for a moment, reluctant to touch the doorknob.

He gestured for you to stand off to the side and quickly turned the knob, shoving the door open before jumping out of the way. In the next instant the hall was filled with toy snakes as they slithered from a large can that was rigged to Leonardo’s door. You could hear giggling coming from one of the other rooms.

“Nice try Mikey!” Leonardo said, drawing the orange clad turtle from his room.

“You may have won this round… or um... the last twenty rounds, but it’s only a matter of time before Dr. Prankenstein takes you down, Leo.” Michelangelo warned before going back into his room.

“Sorry about that.” Leonardo said, stepping over the snakes to check his room for more pranks. Finding none, he beaconed you to enter. “We don’t really have any extra rooms so I hope it’s okay that you share a room with me.”

“That’s fine.” You said, besides, Leonardo’s room was welcoming and tidy. It was sparse but the few things he did have were well taken care of. “You like Japan, don’t you?” you asked, commenting on his décor.

“Splinter’s from there so I’ve always been fascinated by the culture.” Leonardo said. “I have a ton of books on Japanese history.” He gestured to the bookshelf against the far wall.

You crossed the room to get a better look and discovered that aside from Japanese history, the majority of books covered philosophy. “Did you really read all of these?” You asked.

“Yes, several times. Books are hard to come by, down here.” He said and joined you at the bookshelf, he reached above you, giving you a good look at his well-toned body. His plastron was most fascinating, though, several scratched marred its clean surface, each one, probably came with its own story.

“Here, read this” He said and you blushed, hoping he didn’t catch you ogling him.  In his hands was a small leather-bound book. It looked pretty old and so you took it carefully. “This is my favorite book.”

“I um… no offence but I’m don’t really read philosophy books.” You admitted and attempted to put the book back on the shelf when he stopped you.

“Try it first.” He said.

“Alright.” You opened the book and an elegant bookmark fluttered to the ground and as you went to recover it, your eyes fell upon a crate of VHS tapes. “Is that the entire collection of Space Heroes?” You asked, dropping the bookmark back into place before shutting the book.

A flush creeped across Leonardo’s features and he nodded. “Um… Yeah.” You smiled, was he embarrassed?

“I love Space Heroes!” you said. “I’ve seen every episode a million times, well, except for season 0.” You said, referring to an unaired season of the show, the fabled prequel, which you couldn’t find anywhere online no matter how hard you tried.

“I have season 0.” Leonardo said.

“Seriously?” you dug through the tapes and found one marked  _zero_  and pulled it free from the crate. “Can we watch it?”

“Now?” he asked.

Of course, there was no way you could sleep now, not when you knew this tape existed. “How about just the first episode? Please?” you poked your lip out giving him your best begging face. Hopefully you looked cute enough to sway him.

He took a careful breath and grabbed the tape. “Just the first episode.” He said, leading you out to the living room, where you passed the valley of forgotten toy snakes.

You sat down on the couch and watched as Leonardo popped the tape into the VCR. He pressed play and took a seat next to you. You shifted in your seat, excited. You heard him chuckle and turned to face him. “What?”

“I just didn’t think anyone else loved this show as much as I do. It’s pretty dated.” He said.

“That just adds to its charm.” You said.

“I agree.”

Several episodes later…

You were startled when you felt something heavy fall against your shoulder, glancing over you were greeted by the sleeping face of your turtle guardian. “I will vanquish thee, evil doer.” He mumbled. You chuckled and the movement caused his body to fall so that his head was on your lap.

You looked down at him, the glow of the T.V. splashed across his lax features making him look peaceful. You lightly traced your fingers over his features, you had to admit he was pretty cute. Those blue eyes of his sealed the deal. You moved your attention to his plastron again, tracing over a particularly deep gouge. He shifted a bit and you withdrew your hand.

You didn’t want to wake him, so instead you grabbed the book he’d given you and decided to start with the bookmarked page. While you read, you absentmindedly toyed with the tails of his mask. And inevitably, lulled by Leonardo’s rhythmic breathing, the need for sleep caught up with you.

* * *

 “Ehem.” You woke with a start only to be greeted by the piercing emerald eyes of Raphael. “Have a little fun last night?” he teased. In your morning haze you didn’t understand what he was talking about. He pointed down at your lap.

Leonardo’s head was buried in your lap and his breath ghosted over your thighs, from the right angle, the position looked wrong. You panicked and shoved Leonardo off of your lap, he landed on the hard floor with a thud.

Raphael snickered at Leonardo’s attempt to figure out what was going on. “Nice one.” Raphael said. “It’s hard to catch Leo off his guard even while he’s sleeping.” He said. “Just for that I’ll keep what I just saw a secret.” He stalked off toward the kitchen.

“What is he talking about?” Leonardo asked causing you to blush, you weren’t about to paint a picture for him.

“I have no idea.” You said, offering Leonardo a hand, it was just a gesture since there was no way you were strong enough to actually pull him up. He accepted the hand anyway and stood up. “Thanks for letting me watch season 0.”

“It’s not a big deal.” He waved it off.

“Yes it is.” You said. “Captain Ryan is my idol. Whenever I think I’m incapable of something I think about him and what he would do. He’d find a way to face any crisis, no matter what. And that’s what I’m gonna do. I’m not going to let this new body hold me back.”

“That’s good.” Leonardo said. “Take it from experience, your body is capable of a lot of things.”

“You’re right.” You said. “Teach me how to use it. Teach me how to fight. I want to be a ninja turtle.”

“That’s not exactly what I meant.” He said sheepishly. “Plus, I don’t think that’s a good idea. It takes years of practice and discipline. Your best bet is to stay here until the retro-mutagen can be formulated.”

“I’m not waiting around while my mentor is locked up somewhere.” You said. “Like you and Splinter, I would do anything for my mentor.” At that, the protest died on his lips.

“Alright.” He said, his body suddenly becoming rigid. “But before you commit to this you should know that I won’t go easy on you. It will be a lot of hard work so I expect you to be serious about this.”

“I’ve never been more serious about anything in my entire life.” you said.


	5. Donatello 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Donatello: Intelligent and as strong as a Mountain.  
> He’s Logical, kind and spends too much time working in his lab. He’ll challenge everything you know about weakness and strength, for beneath his gentle nature lurks the heart of a true warrior. And as you start to fall for him, you stand to lose more than just your mentor.
> 
> And as the saying goes: Love is the most powerful emotion, and that makes it the most dangerous

“I choose…” you hesitated under the expectant gazes of each turtle, your eyes shifted from one to the other. This was too much pressure. How were you supposed to pick one of them to protect you when you weren’t even sure you could trust them?

Okay, so most of the rumors concerning the turtles were good, they were seen as heroes. But, that was exactly the problem because when it came to their enemies the Turtles were rumored to be absolutely ruthless.

You weren’t exactly an enemy, you did, ultimately, changed your mind about helping Kraang. Though, that didn’t change the fact that you’d been mutated to suit Kraang’s crazy “Destroy the Ninja Turtles” agenda. You began to wonder if the turtles would still help you if they found out about your connection to Kraang.

You were struck by the possibility of them retracting their assistance, of never being human again. It was chilling to think that you would have to spend the rest of your life in the sewers, in the dark, all alone. Worse than that, was the thought that you’d never be able to rescue your mentor.

You vision blurred and the room began to spin. Oh no, you were going to faint again. Your body gave out and the ground started coming closer, but you never felt its impact. Instead, Donatello caught you in his arms and scooped you up bridal style. You tried to fight the urge to sleep, catching a bits of the conversation that followed.

“Is ____ going to be okay?” Michelangelo’s asked, his voice coated in worry.

“Yes, Mikey.” Donatello soothed. “Probably, just a side effect of the mutation process.”

“In any case, Donatello, I think it prudent to leave _____ in your care.” You heard Splinter say before finally losing your battle with sleep.

* * *

The savory aroma of marinara, cheese and pepperoni mingled together in the dangerous dance know as pizza. It drew you from your slumber, like you were a bear coming out of hibernation. You sat up, discovering that you were lying on a cot behind a drawn medical curtain. You decided that Donatello must’ve carried you here after you blacked out.

You sighed with disappointment, the last thing you wanted to do was be a burden on the turtles, or give them a reason not to help you. And yet, you’d managed to faint in front of them…Twice. Ugh. Well, there wasn’t anything you could do about it now. Besides there was a more pressing matter to attend to; finding that pizza.

You pulled the curtain back and saw Donatello sitting at his computer, typing away, you marveled at how fast his fingers moved, given there were only six of them. You would have been content to watch him all night, but your stomach had other plans. A rather loud growl escaped from your gut and you blushed as it caused Donatello to stare at you.

“Oh, you’re up.” He said, giving you a kind smile. “How are you feeling?” he asked. “Other than hungry, of course.” He added, was this his way of teasing you?

“Better.” You said, “I’m not sure what came over me.”

“Your blood sugar was really low.” He said, making his way over to you. “Sorry, I took a sample of your blood while you were sleeping, I know that’s invasive but I had to make sure that the mutation process wasn’t going to change you any further.”

“It’s alright.” You said, under those circumstances at least.

“Turns out you fainted from a lack of nutrition.” He said, shining a light in your eyes to test your pupal dilation. “When was the last time you ate something?”

“I haven’t eaten all day.” You admitted, “I got caught up searching for my mentor, he went missing a few days ago.” Your stomach growled again. “By the way, was it my imagination or did I smell…” You were cut off when Michelangelo burst through the lab doors, balancing a pizza box in one hand.

“Pizza!” Michelangelo exclaimed.

“Mikey!” Donatello shouted, “Don’t just burst in here, you almost gave me a heart attack.” He said.

“Sorry, D. I just thought that Neo-Turtle might be hungry when they woke up.” He said, crossing the room to join you and Donatello.

“Neo-Turtle?” you asked, “Is that me?”

“Yep, took me a little while to come up with it, but I think it’s pretty badass.” Michelangelo said.

“Mikey likes to name our allies and enemies, you don’t have to answer to it.” Donatello explained.

“It’s okay, I kinda like it, sounds futuristic.” You said, and besides it made you feel included to know that Michelangelo thought of you, hopefully, as an ally.

“I knew you’d like it.” He said.

“Alright, Mikey, I was in the middle of Neo- I mean ______’s checkup. Could you please excuse us?”

“Oh, sure. No problem D.” Michelangelo turned to leave and your heart sank, he was going to take the pizza away with him. Oh, true love, you hardly knew it.

“Oh, and Mikey.” Donatello said, stopping the orange clad turtle in his tracks.

“Yeah, D?”

“Leave the pizza.” You smiled, Donatello, would make a fine guardian, indeed.

Half an hour later, pizza devoured and checkup complete, you sat cross-legged on the cot while Donatello mused over everything you’d revealed to him (leaving out any mention of the Kraang, of course). “You mentioned that your mentor went missing. Is he, by any chance, a scientist?”

You perked up. “Yes. A biochemist. Do you know something?”

“Well, my brothers and I have been investigating, someone is kidnapping scientist all over the city, we’ve run out of leads though." Your face dropped, if the turtles couldn’t save your mentor, then what chance did _you_ have?

“Hey, don’t worry.” Donatello said, placing a gentle hand on your knee. “We’ll save your mentor and the other scientists.” He gave a pause “Actually, we could really use your help.”

“Mine? Why? I’m not a ninja, I don’t even have time to exercise.”

“Be that as it may, you are the apprentice of a biochemist, your knowledge would be a huge addition.” He said “I’m pretty good with biology but my forte is mostly mechanical and technical.”

You beamed with pride at the prospect of being useful and you felt honored that Donatello would give you that much credit. “I’m still learning but I’ll help you in any way I can.”

“I’m glad you see it that way.” He grinned so ominously that you regretted your words instantly.

* * *

 

“I can’t believe you want to sneak into the biochemical lab!” you whispered harshly at Donatello as you stood on the outskirts of the university.

“It’s the most advanced Biochemical lab in the city.” He explained, as if that made it okay.

“That’s my point. It’s heavily guarded by a state of the art surveillance system.” You said. “There’s no way we are getting in there unseen.”

“Getting in is the easy part.” He said, “All we have to do is cut the power for a few moments.”

“Sure, that might get us into the science building but what about the door to the lab? It runs on a backup system that is impossible to get around.”

“Well, then it’s a good thing that I have a key.” He said.

“There are no keys, it’s an electronic lock, and it requires a code...” You trailed off as you realized what he meant. You were his key. “Oh, no.” you said. “No way. I can’t. They monitor the entry logs, if I go in there when the lab is in backup mode, they’ll know it was me, I will lose my apprenticeship.”

“Not if I wipe the logs clean.” He said, but you weren’t convinced, your apprenticeship was all you had. Donatello grabbed you by the shoulders, forcing you to look into his eyes, beneath those reddish brown orbs you saw a raging fire. “You’ll be okay. Trust me.” Your resolve crumbled under his strength and you gave in.

“Good. Follow my lead.” He whispered before hurrying through the quad, keeping to the shadows so well that you nearly lost sight of him. Follow his lead? Yeah right. You did your best to follow the path he’d taken and caught up to him, the science building was just across the street. Unfortunately, there were no more shadows to keep you covered.

“Guards.” Donatello pointed toward two men on the roof, they were carrying semi-automatic guns with laser guided sights. “A bit heavy for a university science building.” He said.

“Yeah, that’s not normal.” You said.

“I’ll say.” He said. “Those are members of the EPF.”

“EPF?” you asked.

“Earth Protection Force, a covert branch of the government specializing in extra-terrestrial activity.” Donatello said. “I wonder what they are doing here.” He mused, “Only one way to find out.”

“Are you crazy!” you said, “Look at us, we are mutant turtles, if I worked for alien hunters anonymous I would shoot us on sight.”

“Then, we’ll have to be careful and grateful that you aren’t one of them.” Your face dropped, was that supposed to be funny? “Cutting the power is out of the question now. They’ll be prepared for something like that and we don’t want to tip them off.”

“You said it yourself, it’s a good thing that you have the key.” You grinned, “I know the code to the security system too.” You announced.

“Why didn't you say that earlier?” he asked.

“Because I’m not supposed to know the code, forget my apprenticeship, if I get caught shutting off the security code I’ll go to federal prison.” You admitted, then came to a decision, “But now, it’s worth the risk to know what these guys are up to.”

A few moments later the two of you made it around to the back entrance of the science hall, there were no guards there, which made sense because the security pad was tucked away, only a few people knew how to access it. Luckily, the EPF wasn’t in the know.

“Are you ready?” Donatello asked and you could tell he was worried about the prospect of you getting shot.

“Yeah.” You said, solidifying your voice to ease his mind. “I got this.”

“Okay. I’ll cover you.” He drew forth his bo staff and gave it a spin.

You made your way to the door and felt around for a small slit in the door jamb, finding it, you pulled a thin keypad free of its confines and punched in the code. The light above the door’s handle flashed from red to green and you gave Donatello a thumbs up.

He ran to your side, tucking his bo back into its sleeve. “Good work.” He said, placing a hand on your shoulder. The warmth of his touch and his praise made your heart do cartwheels in your chest.

The two of you hurried through the darkened halls, making your way to the biochemistry lab. When you arrived you made short work of the lock and stepped inside, Donatello right behind you. Everything was just as it had been when you’d last saw it, six hours ago, right before you were ambushed by the Kraang.

Donatello gently pushed passed you, in awe at the lab in which he now found himself. “This lab is amazing.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty great.” You said, anxiety creeping up on you. “S-So why are we here, exactly?” you asked, it occurred to you that you’d never acquired that bit of information before all of this started.  

“Your mentor’s notes.” He said. “Where are they stored?”

“On that computer, over there.” You said, pointing to one of the three terminals that occupied the room. “Why, his notes?”

“His kidnapping, and the fact that EPF is here, tells me that he must’ve discovered something big.” He booted up the computer and before you could tell Donatello that you didn’t know the professor’s password, he had hacked his way in. He grabbed a flash drive from somewhere on his belt and began to drag and drop every file that looked relevant. “done.” He said.

“Good, we should probably go now.” Your thoughts filled with images of EPF guys experimenting on you, thinking you were an alien, and you couldn’t fight your anxiety anymore.

“Hey, you don’t have to be scared.” He said. “Even though you didn’t choose me to protect you, I promise I will keep you safe.”

Where did that come from? “I was going to choose you.” You said.

“Really?”

“Yeah. I trust you, Donatello.”

“You can call me Donnie.” He said.

“Okay. Donnie.” You said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here he is, Donatello, I was a little sad when no one voted for him but I can see now that some of you love our smart boy.
> 
> I know its hard to take the time to comment so I appreciate those of you who have. and, to those who haven't, you still managed to find time to read so i thank you as well.
> 
> How are you enjoying the story so far? This chapter was super fun to write. Best for last, I guess. Anyway, see you next time as we check in with Raphael. Meow Meow, hopefully he's not hiding something from his brothers...that would be terrible, just terrible.


	6. Raphael 2

 

* * *

“Um, what is this hell move called again?” You asked in a strained voice, your body was on fire, screaming at you for making it work in ways you’d never asked of it before.

“It’s called a plank.” Raphael said. He’d spent the last two hours teaching you the proper way to strengthen your core muscles. “Hold it for thirty more seconds.” He said. “And don’t forget to breathe.”   

“This is the worst.” You complained, you could feel your arms shake against their discomfort.

“Yeah, well, you asked for this.”

“When!?” you were offended, at no point during your interaction with Raphael, had you asked to join his hellish regiment of self-torture. “I only wanted to learn a few moves so I could defend myself.”

“Knowing the moves ain’t enough.” He said. “They mean nothing if you don’t have power to put behind them.” He said. “Time.” He called.

“Ugh!” You let out an exaggerated breath as you let your body fall to the mat beneath you. “This sucks.” You said and rolled over, your body was buzzing with new sensations and you knew you’d be feeling it later.

“Heh.” At that smug laugh, you lifted your head to look Raphael in the eyes. “I’m not surprised that someone like you can’t handle it.” He crossed his arms over his chest and glanced down at you.

“Just what the heck is that supposed to mean?”

“Hey, it’s okay. Without the weak then there’d be no way to measure strength.” He laughed.

 You ignored your aching body as you climbed to your feet. “I can handle anything you dish out!” you said, poking his plastron in-between words. 

“S’at so?” he asked. “Yeah well, we’ll see where you stand tomorrow. If you can stand, that is.” He said, getting one more jab in by, poking you in the ribs, knowing they were growing sore.

You were about to throw an insult his way when you heard a commotion coming from the common area. “Where the heck is everyone?” You knew that voice, it was Casey, just how many people from school knew about the turtles? First Irma, now Jones?

When you’d reached the living room with Raphael, you saw Casey Jones standing at the entrance. The other turtles emerged from various rooms, wondering what was going on.

“Dudes! My friend stinky Pete, says something big’s going down at the street fight warehouse, word is that Hun is looking to strike a deal with the leader of the Crimson Tides.”

“The Crimson Tides?!” you exclaimed, “The street gang whose motto is: **Stain the east river with the blood of our enemies.** ”

“Yep, that’s the one.” Casey said, then paused. “Uh… one, two, three, four…five?” he counted, pointing to each turtle then at you. “What’s going on? Who’s this?”

“Casey this is…” Raphael started to say.

“Neo-Turtle!” Michelangelo interjected before throwing his arm around your shoulder, “great name, right?” his smile faltered when you didn’t agree right away. “It took me all night to come up with it.”

“I like it.” you said, not wanting to hurt the jovial turtle’s feelings. “It sounds cool.”

“Yes! I knew it.” He beamed, making you feel warm inside.

“Hey, I get it! New turtle.” Casey said. “Nice one, Mikey.”

“Thanks.”

“Alright.” Leonardo said, clearly he was finished with the new name conversation. “So what’s this about Hun and the Crimson Tides?” Leonardo asked.

“The Purple Dragons decided that they needed to expand and so they are forming treaties with the other gangs, if they reach an agreement with the Crimson Tides then it won’t be long before the other gangs follow. It’s all going down tonight, one of the biggest fight nights.”

“Aw, yeah, let’s go kick some Purple Dragon butt.” Raphael said. Your eyes widened, was he serious? As far as you could tell the turtles only used ancient weapons. They’d be no match against guys with semi-automatic guns.

“Stand down, Raph.” Leonardo said. “It’s too risky. It can go one of two ways. Either the gangs agree to join forces or they don’t and a turf war breaks out. Either way there will be too many gang members to contend with.”

“Oh, please, they aren’t as strong as the foot, we got this in the bag.” Raphael said.

“There is always strength in numbers, Raph.” Leonardo said. “Look, bottom line is that it doesn’t matter if they join forces or not, until they actually do something to earn a butt kicking, it isn’t our problem.”

Raphael tensed up next to you, it was the same stiffness his body held last night after you told him you’d give up a fight. “So much for _fearless_ leader.”

“This has nothing to do with fear, this is about choosing our battles. It’s about not kicking a hornet’s nest.” Leonardo said. The leader in blue had a point, but looking at Raphael, you got the feeling that he didn’t feel the same and that this wasn’t over.

* * *

Later that night, you were roused from sleep by the sound of someone shuffling about the room. You peered through your eyelashes and watched while Raphael gathered his weapons and slipped out of his room. You waited a few moments before deciding to follow him.

He crept past the, now empty, living room and hurried over the turnstiles and out of sight. You ran after him as silently as you could, your body was still aching from your exercises. You crawled under the turnstiles and rounded a corner just in time to see Casey and Raphael make their way up to the surface.

When you exited the sewer you found yourself in an empty alley, it was eerily quiet and the air had a cold bite to it. You headed to the end of the alley but could see no sign of Raphael or Casey. You weren’t too far behind them, how did you lose them so quickly? That didn’t matter, you had a hunch about where the pair were headed.

You made your way down the sidewalk, careful to stay out of sight. You knew this area well and you were only about five blocks from the warehouse district. As you got closer to your destination you could hear the commotion of rambunctious gang members as they hooted and hollered for the next fight to start.

You discovered that your hunch was right when you noticed Raphael and Casey sneaking into the warehouse through the entrance on the roof. Below them was the scariest bouncer you’d ever seen. You cursed, how were you supposed to get in? It didn’t take long for you to get your answer.

“Lookie what we got here, Ricky, one of them Ninja Turtle freaks!” You wheeled around as a pair of hands grabbed you from behind. You struggled for a moment before remembering what Raphael had taught you. Dropping your weight, you threw the guy off balance enough to kick him in the shin. “Son of a-”He let you go but you fell forward into Ricky’s waiting arms.

“Let me go!” you struggled but Ricky was stronger than the guy who’d grabbed you.

“You got a lot of guts, kicking Smalls like that.” Ricky held your arms behind your back to keep you from struggling. You let out a grunt of frustration, being weak wasn’t fun at all. You made a promise to yourself, if you got out of this you’d never complain about Raphael’s brand of training again.

You stiffened when you heard the sound of a switch blade as it clicked into place. “Let’s shell this turtle freak.” the gang member named Smalls had recovered from your attack and was approaching you with the biggest knife you’d ever seen.

When Smalls entered your personal space, you squeezed your eyes shut, you didn’t want his stupid face to be the last thing you saw before you died. You conjured up an image of someone special, your mentor… no, his face was molding into someone else. Raphael? Really? No, it’s only because you really need him now. Yeah. That’s it.

“Hold up, Smalls, I have a better idea.” Ricky said. “I say we enter it in the fights. Once everyone sees that we captured a Ninja Turtle then we’ll rise in the ranks.” Ricky said. “Plus I’m sure everyone will really enjoy the show, this turtle getting beaten to death.”

“Ooh, I like that idea, Rick.” Smalls turned back toward you, drawing his knife closer to you, letting you get a good look before retracting the blade. “Looks like you get to live for a few more hours.”

You swallowed hard against the lump in your throat, your only solace was that these idiots didn’t know you weren’t a Ninja Turtle, and that they wouldn’t be rising in any ranks once their buddies found out. Jerks.

You were shoved forward sharply as Ricky released your arms, “Any sudden moves and I drop you were you stand.” He warned, drawing a gun from the back of his pants.

You rolled your eyes, you were going to die anyway and a bullet would be much faster. That dark thought was quickly purged by a vision of Raphael’s angered face, _“Never stop fighting!”_

Okay, you decided to try it Raphael’s way and comply until you were able to escape. As long as you were alive there was a chance.

The pair shoved you into a side entrance of the warehouse, bypassing the bouncer. Once inside you cringed at the smell of blood, sweat and weed, the mixture of scents was sweet in a way that warned of danger. You nearly gaged on the stench.

Looking forward you noticed a huge caged boxing ring in the center of the warehouse, the place looked like a small stadium and it would have been impressive if not for the crowd. In the center of the ring stood a rather large, intimidating bear mutant.

You were pushed ever forward by the two gang members and once you reached the ring Ricky pulled you to a stop while Smalls grabbed the microphone from the announcer.

“Yo, all yous listen up.” Smalls said, and the crowd fell silent, “As a treat on this most special of occasions, my pal Ricky and I present you with a Ninja Turtle.” He shoved you through the open cage door and into the ring, you stumbled and glanced up at the large bear mutant.

The crowd booed and hissed, some of them were calling for your immediate demise. You stared down at your feet, unable to bare the look of hatred on their faces. “Yeah, I feel the same way but why not let this freak duke it out with Grinder here. I think that would be a great show, what do yous think?” Smalls finished and the crowd began cheering once more.

The microphone let out a loud screech as Smalls dropped it onto the table, in front of the announcer, who promptly scooped it up and said, “Well, the crowd has spoken, let’s give them what they want.” He said then rang the bell, signifying the start of the fight.

Grinder wasted no time in crossing the ring to swipe at you and you quickly jumped out of his range. Using the art of running away you scurried around the ring in an attempt to keep the bear man away from you.

Grinder let out a growl as he was growing particularly frustrated at your evasive moves. “Turn and fight!” he said, his voice was surprisingly high pitched for such a large mutant.

“Can’t we talk about this?” you asked, holding your arms up in a non-confrontational way.

“I only speak fists.” He said.

“Fair enough,” you paused, “in that case, can I have a translator?”

“You got a smart mouth!” he jumped at you, managing to grab you, his large hairy paw hand wrapped around your neck tightly and he lifted your off the ground. You began choking as his nails dug into your skin, you saw stars and within moments you felt yourself teetering on the edge of consciousness.

Suddenly, Grinder released you, tossing you to the ground roughly before stomping down on your shell. You gasped for breath and ignored the pain as he ground the heel of his foot into your carapace. “I thought you Ninja Turtles could fight, this is pathetic. I should just snap your turtle spine and be done with it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, looks like you’ve gotten yourself into quite the pickle. Hopefully Raphael will show up soon, who knows how much of this fight you can BEAR? Eh eh? 
> 
> Thank you guys for reading and reviewing. I’m glad that most of you think this is fun, so on that note, are there any interactions you would like to have with any of the turtles? Maybe I’ll figure out a way to incorporated it into the story. ;)


	7. Michelangelo 2

* * *

A delightful aroma drifted through the bedroom and tickled at your nose. Your eyes snapped open, you knew exactly what that smell was. Pancakes! You sprung from the bed and crossed the room, careful to avoid stray Legos, and yanked the door open. You followed the scent to the other end of the lair and found the kitchen. Michelangelo was working his magic at the stove, humming a strange tune that sounded a lot like a familiar theme song.

“Morning, Mikey.” You said and as he turned around to greet you, you noticed that he was wearing a pink shabby chic apron. Could this turtle get any more adorable? You hoped not as it wouldn’t be good for your heart.

“Morning.” He replied and lifted a huge stack of pancakes and tipped the plate toward you. “I hope you like pancakes.”

“Are you kidding me, I love pancakes!” you said, taking the plate from him before sitting down at the table.

“Good, then you’ll love my world famous old fashion pancakes.” He said.

You found the syrup on the table and drenched the mountain of pancakes before taking a big bite. The moment the fork entered your mouth you were transported to a log cabin in the woods, it was peaceful, earthy and warm. “These are the best pancakes I’ve ever tasted.” When it came time to decide your last meal, this was sure to be your choice.

“Thanks.” He smiled, “I’ve had years of practice, if I wasn’t a crime fighting ninja, I’d like to think I’d be a crime fighting chef.” He said.

 You chuckled as you pictured Michelangelo: The Caped Culinary Crusader; fighting for truth, justice and good eats. “You have to keep the crime fighting part, huh?” you asked.

“That’s right, son. I’d DISH out justice and give the bad guys a TASTE of their own medicine.” He said.

“That’s a RECIPE for success.” You teased.

“You have all the right INGREDENTS to make a great sidekick.” He said and the look in his eyes told you that he was initiating a challenge. Can you keep this going?

“Yeah, no matter what the evil scheme the baddies COOK up, they’ll get SERVED their just DESSERTS.” BAM. Three puns in one, there was no way he could beat that.

Unfazed, Michelangelo simply gave you an evil grin. Apparently, he could bead it. “If they STIR up trouble we’ll SCOOP them up and WHISK them off to jail where they’ll STEW over what they’ve done.” He said.

“Okay, I’m out.” You pouted.

“Don’t worry, you had a pretty good run. You just couldn’t MEASURE up.”

You shared a laugh with your green hero and found yourself wishing the moment would never end. At that thought, you felt your throat close up. What were you thinking? Here you were having fun while the professor was out there waiting to be rescued.

“Hey.” Michelangelo said, taking a seat on the stool next to yours. “It’s gonna be okay.” He said. “I promise, we’ll save your mentor and change you back.” It was as if he’d read your mind. “You’ll be back to your normal life in no time.” He continued. “We’ll take care of everything, all you need to do,” he slid a smiley-faced pancake toward you, “is smile.” He added.

Michelangelo’s optimism was contagious and you felt a smile playing at the corner of your mouth. “I can do that.” You said.

“Good.” He said.

* * *

 

Later that afternoon you were seated in front of the T.V. watching Michelangelo play a battle royale first person shooter, it was cartoony and vibrant but had a certain charm. Michelangelo, armed with a long-range weapon, was down to his last twelve rounds of ammunition. Currently, he was one of ten players left in the game and the play area was shrinking. You had no idea how he was going to pull this out but you kept watching.

With the play area shrinking by the minute, the other players were forced toward one location, but since Michelangelo had built a small fort in the center, the players were all drawn toward him. One by one he shot them down until there was only one other player left. “It’s just you and me, GamerXtr3me.” He said.

“You can do it, Mikey.” You said.

Before Michelangelo’s character could fire, GamerXt3rme switched weapons and was now barreling toward Michelangelo with a flamethrower. There was no way for Michelangelo to avoid the sweeping flames and his character was killed. “Bummer dude, I was so close.” He said.

“Why don’t you try again?” you asked.

“Nah, it can’t be too fun for you to watch me play. Besides, I just had an epic idea.” He said. “It’s something we can do together.”

“Oh yeah, what’s that?” you didn’t know it at the time but you’d regret asking that question.

 

* * *

“I think it might be too big.” You said.

“It’ll be fine so long as we are careful. Just a little more on the bottom, that way it’ll stay up longer.” Michelangelo said. “We don’t want it to spill too soon.” He added. “Oh, that’s perfect, hold it just like that.”

 

“It’s heavier than I thought it would be.” You said in a strained voice. “My arm is getting tired. Are you almost finished?” you asked.

“Almost. Just a little more.” Michelangelo’s voice wasn’t the least bit fatigued, it must be all the ninja training. “Ah, there.” He said, “I’m finished.” Relief washed over you as your hands fell away. “You did a great job. I’m impressed. Is this your first one?” he asked.

“Yes, but I’ve heard about them. I mean, you can’t live in a college town without learning a few things.” You said. “But um, don’t you think the video camera is going a little too far?”

“No way, it’s more fun this way and we have the added bonus of watching the video as many times as we want.” He smiled.

“If you say so.” You said.

“Trust me.” He said, “When it comes to pranks I am the master.” He placed his hands on his hips and stood back to admire your collective handy work. “See, the box is the prefect size.”

Currently, the two of you were standing inside of Raphael’s room, the stage for Michelangelo’s “epic idea”. And the two of you had just finished taping a shoebox filled with toy bugs and syrup to the wall above Raphael’s door. A string hung loosely from the hinged lid of the box, one swift tug and sticky chaos would ensue.

“Okay, let Operation Sticky Bug begin.” Michelangelo pressed the record button on the camera and tucked out of sight. He ushered you out of the room, making sure to tape the other end of the string to the door.

Together, you and Michelangelo ducked into his room and you didn’t have to wait long for Raphael to arrive. At first you thought that pranks were childish and a waste of time, but now that you were a part of one you felt strangely excited. You closed your eyes as Raphael came closer and imagined the scene play out.

Raphael shoved his door open, causing the string to become taunt which in turn caused the shoebox to open. A sticky substance drizzled down over his head and slowly made its way down the front of his body. Little by little, plastic roaches inched their way down the waterfall of syrup. Plop! One landed on Raphael’s shoulder. Plop Plop! Two more landed on arm. Raphael’s eyes went wide with terror as his mind was unable to discern what was happening.

He could, however, feel bugs crawling on him. Oh, how he hated bugs. A tense feeling slithered over his body and wrapped around his spine like barbed wire. He wanted to jump out of his skin and get away from the sensation. Finally, a scream wrenched its way out of his throat, “GAH!” He batted at his body, trying to get the bugs off of him but they were too sticky and ended up sticking to his hands instead. “Get’em off get’em off!”

You covered your mouth with both hands, you felt bad but at the same time you couldn’t keep the rumble of laugher from escaping your lips. Suddenly, Michelangelo threw his door open, was he going to confess?

“HA, Gottcha Bro. Dr, Prankenstein strikes again!” You felt your body freeze over, you were afraid he was going to do that. Welp, this was the day you were going to die. 

Raphael’s stopped mid-freak-out session and glared daggers at Michelangelo, his eyes suddenly became fire and he clenched his fists as his sides. “MIKEY! I’m gonna kill you!?”

“We should go.” Michelangelo said, scooping you up in his arms, carrying you across the lair as Raphael took chase.

“If you think using _______ as a shield is going to stop me then you’ve got another thing coming!” Raphael yelled.

Michelangelo ran for the exit, “hang tight.” He said before jumping over the turnstiles, grabbing his skateboard on the way. He threw down his board and hopped on, skating through the tunnels with expert precision.

You could hear Raphael yelling behind you, “You have to come home some time!” Raphael’s yell vibrated through the sewer. “and when you do, I’ll be waiting!”

Once he was sure you were out of danger, Michelangelo set you down on the ground and kicked his board up into the air before catching it. “That was awesome.” He said. “We make a great team.” You couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride at that comment. “Let’s celebrate over a couple orders of Pizza Gyoza.”

“Gyoza? Like a pot sticker?” your stomach protested, that didn’t sound at all appetizing. “Why would someone put pizza ingredients inside a pot sticker?”

“Uh, because it’s delicious.” He said.

* * *

 

You emerged from the sewers, coming up in an alleyway, and Michelangelo lead you around to the front of the nearest building. “This is Murakami-san’s restaurant.” He said. “Come on.”

Michelangelo made to leave the alley but you grabbed his elbow. “Are you crazy? Someone will see us.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it. It should be empty by now and Murakami-san knows all about us.” He tugged you out of the alley and toward the front door. A wind chime rang above you as you entered.

“Welcome.” Murakami greeted, then sniffed the air. “Ah, Michelangelo-san, and you have a date?” he teased.

“Hey, Murakami-san, this is Neo-Turtle.” He said, but you were too focused on the fact that he hadn’t corrected Murakami about the date comment. “the usual, my dude.” He said.

“Pizza Gyoza, coming right up.”

“Sweet.” Michelangelo lead you toward the counter where you had a first-hand view of a true kitchen master. Murakami was like a controlled hurricane, moving from one station to another, never letting a pot boil over or an ingredient burn. He quickly whipped up the Japanese-Italian fusion food and set two matching plates on the counter.

Your apprehension melted away as a wonderful smell wafted toward your nose and you couldn’t wait to get a taste. You were unable to find a fork so you used your chopsticks to stab at the gyoza, skewering one before popping it into your mouth. You bit down and melted cheese and marinara sauce flooded through your mouth, it was like pizza heaven. “Mmm.” You went in for another pot sticker.

“You don’t know how to use chopsticks?” Michelangelo asked.

“It’s hard with three fingers.” You said. Not that it was easy with five fingers.

“It’s super easy.” He held up his hand to show you the proper way to hold them with turtle hands. You tried to mimic his fingers but were unable to get the top stick to move.” You pouted. “What’s wrong with Pizza Gyoza Shish Kebabs?”

“Heh, Nothing.” He said. “But you almost have it.” He reached over and placed his hands over yours and started playing with your fingers. You could feel your body flush at the contact and a tingling sensation ran up your arm and set your brain abuzz. You studied his face and could tell that he was concentrating on his task as the tip of his tongue protruded from the corner of his mouth. He clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth when your fingers popped back to their starting position and he tried again.

He stopped and stared back at you, his bright baby blue eyes pulled the air from your lungs; You didn’t know if it was because he’d caught you staring or if it was because he could see into your soul. He smiled, the freckles on his cheeks accentuated his baby face and made him look all the more handsome. Handsome?

He let his hand fall away. “There you go.” He said, finally releasing your gaze. You looked down and found that the chopsticks fit perfectly in your new hands. You tested the top stick and it moved. You went for the gyoza and picked it up as if you’d been using chopsticks for years. “I did it!” you said. “look, Mikey.”

“I see it.” He smiled and…did he just give you a look of longing or was that your imagination? You didn’t know, it was too fast an action for you to be sure. Not wanting to ruin the evening, you decided not to worry about it and instead enjoyed dinner with your orange clad guardian.


	8. Leonardo 2

* * *

After breakfast you busied yourself with washing the dishes while the boys engaged in their morning training routine with Splinter. From your place in the kitchen you could see their silhouettes through the Japanese style windows of the dojo.

While each of them performed feats of masterful prowess you found that your eyes kept settling on Leonardo. With two swords twirling around him he was an impenetrable wall of razor-sharp precision. He cut through the air with the speed of a hurricane, powerful and strong.

“Yame!” You heard Splinter’s sharp command and the boys stopped what they were doing to take a seat before their master. Splinter stopped in front of each of his sons and, in turn, gave them a bit of constrictive criticism, after which, he said, “Reflect on what I have told you, my sons.”

“Hai sensei.” The turtles filed out of the dojo leaving Leonardo behind. You tentatively entered the dojo and Leonardo gave you a courteous nod of acknowledgment. “Are you ready to start kendo training?” he beaconed you to come closer.

“Kendo? You mean I get to use a katana?” you asked.

“No, _you_ get to use a bokken.” He gestured to a wooden katana sitting on the weapons rack.

You plucked the bokken up and gave it a test swing. It was heavier than it looked but it wasn’t anything you couldn’t handle. “Awesome.” You gave weapon a test swing and Leonardo pinned you with a look, stopping you in your actions.

“The first rule is that you are to treat your bokken as if it is a real katana.” His attitude was suddenly serious. “Now the first thing we are going to learn is how to sit for mediation and how to bow. We are in the dojo so we need to show some respect.” You didn’t like being reprimanded so early in the game so you set your mind to giving it your all. Leonardo was a scary teacher. “Okay, follow along with me as best you can. Ready?”

“Ready.” You confirmed.

“ _Seiza_.” He called then slid his left foot back, lowered his left knee, followed by his right knee before sitting down on his heels. It was meticulous but he was moving slow enough that following him wasn’t hard at all.

“Good.” He praised. Wow. You could feel your body tingle with pride, you wanted more. “Now. _Mokuso_.” He called again, “With your palms up, place your left hand on top of your right and make a small circle with your thumbs.” he instructed. “Then close your eyes but not all the way, you need to be able to see if an attack is coming.”

“Keep your back straight and breathe in.” he pulled air in through his nose “and out” he released the air through his mouth. “And again.” You took a few more breaths upon his coaching, and it was as if you had been breathing wrong your entire life.

“ _Yame_ /Stop.” He turned his body toward yours and you felt self-conscious. He was watching you and you didn’t want to screw this up. “ _Otagai-ni_ ” He slid his hands toward the center “Rei.”  He touched the ground in front of him, making a triangle with his forefingers and thumbs and bowed. “ _Onegai-Shimasu_.” He lifted his head. “Try it.”

“Okay.”

“ _Otagai-ni_.” He said “ _Rei_!” you bowed toward each other. “ _Onegai-Shimasu_.”

“ _Onegai-Shimasu_.” You repeated.

“Now we are ready to start training together.” He said.

 

* * *

Training rolled into its second hour and it consisted of learning how to carry, hold and draw your bokken, this was then followed by learning a three-step strike. “ _Chudan_ ” ordered Leonardo, calling for you to take a middle stance. With your sword at your side, you waited for the command you knew was coming. “Taito.” You pulled your sword up slightly, “Nuke…to.” He said. This was your que to draw your sword.

“ _Ichi_ ,” he commanded and you took a step forward with your right foot, simultaneously lifting the sword above your head. “ _Ni_ ,” you swung down while bringing your left foot up, “ _San_.” You went back to the starting position.

“Good!” He said. “I’m impressed that you kept going even when it seemed you were tired. I expect nothing less from my star student.” You felt a sense of pride at that comment in spite of the fact that you were his only student.

“You’re a pretty good teacher.” You said, trying your hardest to remain cool while on the inside your heart was doing cartwheels. Leonardo’s praise was like life giving energy and you felt like you could take on an army.

“Glad you see it that way because tomorrow things are going to get a bit more difficult.” He said.

“Tomorrow?” as much as you wanted to learn kendo, you didn’t think your body, used to a sedentary lifestyle, could handle another two-hour training session so soon. “That seems a bit extreme considering I just started.”

“I warned you that I wasn’t going to go easy on you. If you want to learn traditional Kendo and the way of the warrior then you’ll have to find the resolve.” Wow, Leo was passionate about this. “I know you can do it.”

“You do?”

“Yes. A lot can be read about a person in the way they go about training.”

“Like what, exactly?” you asked.

“In your case, I see someone with a strong will. You have a grace about you. Given enough time, you can become a worthy opponent.” What was he saying, and so candidly? Your heart began pounding in your ears. Did he have any idea how his words affected you?

“I um.” Gee was it hot in here or what? Your throat went dry. “Need some water.” You excused yourself and headed toward the kitchen. Turns out that the turtle meant to protect you, might actually turn out to be the death of you.

You wandered into the kitchen and saw Mikey take a Cheese Pop from the freezer, “Thanks, bro.”

“Uh, Mikey, who are you talking to?” you asked.

“Oh, hey Neo-Turtle” he smiled at you. “I don’t think you’ve met,” he moved away from the freezer, giving you a view of the Neapolitan ice-cream cat living inside. “This is Ice-Cream Kitty.” 

“What the heck, it’s cute.” You hurried to the fridge and smiled at the cat, how could melted ice-cream move around like that. You poked Ice-Cream Kitty on the nose. “Boop.”

“I saw you training with Leo.” He said. “Two hours. That’s pretty intense for someone who’s never done martial arts before.” You shut the freezer door so that Ice-Cream Kitty wouldn’t melt. “You know he’s really strict.” He said. “You should have picked me, then we would be playing video games, maybe playing pranks on Raph. Who knows?”

Be that as it may, you were glad you choose Leonardo to guard you. Something about the stoic turtle made your body hum with new life. “it was harsh but I liked it. It might sound strange but it made me feel alive.” You said. “I can’t wait to do more.”

“Okay,” Michelangelo leaned in close and whispered behind his hand, “level with me, he’s brainwashed you, hasn’t he?” You chuckled at that. “Well, the point is that you survived your first lesson so you deserve a reward.” He said, a tinge of mischief flashed across his features as he stuck the Cheese Pop in your mouth.

COLD! You grabbed the Popsicle stick and pulled the icy treat from you mouth. “Nice job, Neo-Turtle.” He said

Leonardo popped his head into the kitchen, “Mikey, gear up. We’ve got foot activity, topside.”

“Sweet! I wait to kick some butt.” Michelangelo pat you on the caprice on his way out of the kitchen.

“_____, I’m sorry, we have to take care of some things. Will you be alright?” Leonardo asked.

“Oh. Yeah. No problem, there’s actually a Space Heroes marathon on basic cable that I can watch.” He smiled and… was that a flash of jealousy in his eyes? “You know if you guys had DVR I wouldn’t have to watch commercials.”

“I’ll talk to Donnie about it.” his sarcasm wasn’t really appreciated. “But for now, if you get tired of commercials you can always work on your form.” He added.

“Leo, let’s go!” Raphael called

You followed Leonardo out to the common area and settled down on the couch “Stay out of trouble.” Leonardo said.

“No promises, trouble seems to find me.” You teased.

“Hey, me too!” Michelangelo pipped up. “Think it could be some sort of alien conspiracy?”

“Like we need any more of those.” Donatello said.

“Guys, I’m going to leave with or without you.” On that note the boys exited the lair.

Once you were alone you flipped on the T.V. and glanced around for the T.V. guide (this sure was an authentic view of the world before streaming services). Two minutes into your search and you were interrupted by a news segment.

“Channel Six’s Happy Hour News, live, at Comic-Con and as you can see people of all ages and…uh… species are here enjoying a weekend of science fiction, fantasy and imagination. Let’s see what people have to say about the convention. “Hello…um sir.” The reporter held a microphone up to an alien. “What brings you to the Con?”

“Duh, the original cast of Space Heroes is here for a signing and hosting their first panel in ten years.” He said, “it’s epic.”

“WHAT?” Your heart stopped. You didn’t remember hearing about that on any of the online forums you followed (must’ve been a last-minute decision). Figures this would happen during the one weekend you were attacked and turned into a mutant turtle.

Then again, it was the perfect costume, and if anyone asked you about it, you could say you were a character from an obscure anime. It was settled. You couldn’t miss this once in a life time opportunity to get Captain Ryan’s autograph.

 

* * *

With the convention center in view, you took a careful step out of the shadows. “Hey!” someone called and your heart dropped into your stomach. Perhaps this wasn’t a good idea after all. “Sweet costume.” You turned around and saw Spiderman, “Mind if I take a picture?” he held up his smart phone.

“Sure, I guess that would be okay.” You gave your signature pose. “Do you know if the ticket booths are still open?”

“Yeah, but the line is bogus.” He said. “I’m done though. Do you want my pass?” he took off his lanyard and handed it to you. Oh hell yes, this was going to be easy. You might even be back before Splinter noticed.

“Thanks!” you slipped the lanyard around your neck.

“No prob.” He dropped his skateboard on the ground and sped off. “See ya.”

You crossed the street and entered the convention center, your first task was to find a program so you could locate the signing booths. You found a booklet in a nearby trashcan and shuffled through it. “Guest are up in the vender’s room.” Perfect.

You made your way up to the vender’s room and found that the line was practically wrapped around the room. So much for being back before anyone noticed. Well, it was too late to turn back now. You pulled a VHS tape from a bag you were carrying and smiled. Seeing the look on Leo’s face when you showed him Captain Ryan’s signature on his season 0 tape would be worth it.

An hour and a half later you were on your way back to the lair when you heard someone scream in the distance. You turned the corner and saw a couple of guys dressed in black hovering over a young woman. “Stay back! I have pepper spray.” She warned but the men kept advancing.

“Hey jerks!” you called. The two men turned their attention on you and the woman was able to run away. Sweet, you saved someone. Cool. Unfortunately, your victory was short lived because now the men were angry and coming after you. Not good.


	9. Donatello 2

* * *

The warmth radiating off of Donatello now that he knew he was your first choice was akin to that of a cozy summer evening. Unfortunately, your gentle moment was cut short by the beam of a flashlight coming from the hall. Donatello reacted quickly, pulling you down to the ground where you huddled together beneath a science table. Wow. a metallic scent tickled at your nose. Was that Donatello? It was a nice aroma, a pleasant mix of turpentine, motor oil and lavender.

“From what I can tell there are at least two EPF goons in the hallway.” He whispered then held a finger to his lips, you could hear the goons approaching. You looked toward Donatello for a solution and he unsheathed his bo.

Wait a minute? Was he seriously thinking of fighting off gun-toting EPF guys with a stick? You snatched his wrist to stop him, but he shook his head and pointed toward a vent across the room, then jabbed his bo out, indicating his true plan. He wanted to escape through the vent, but one look at its perimeter told you that there was no way Donatello wouldn’t fit. At your questioning gaze, he gestured to himself and shook his head _not me._ then pointed in your direction, _you_

 _No,_ you mouthed. There was no way you were going to leave him to deal with the EPF by himself. Donatello reached over and soothed out the worry wrinkles in your forehead with his fingers. _Everything’s fine, trust me._

You gave him a nod of agreement and the two of you snuck over to the vent. Donatello stood up and thrust his bo downward, wedging the tip beneath the vent grille and used leverage to pop it out of the wall. You climbed into the vent and Donatello replaced the grille, not giving you a chance to change your mind. Man, you really didn’t like this. “But Donnie…”

“No buts.” He knelt down and gave you a smile, “Look, I appreciate your concern but I can handle the EPF, my first priority is keeping you safe.” He said. “I planted a communication device on the inside of your carapace, so we can keep in contact.” he explained. “Just go and no matter what you hear, I want you to keep going until you get away.”

The door burst open and Donatello stood up to block you from view, allowing you chance to escape unseen. You didn’t like this plan but what choice did you really have? You began crawling and only made it a couple of yards before you started hearing voices coming from the communication device.

 “Donatello. Of course,” came an unenthusiastic voice. “Why is it, whenever there is a threat to the earth, you Turtles are always there?”

“Coincidence?” came Donatello’s cheeky reply.

“Indeed,” replied the mystery voice. “Where are your brothers by the way? Surely you weren’t foolish enough to come here on your own.”

“Look. Bishop. I don’t want to fight you. It’s like I keep telling you, we are on the same team.” Donatello reasoned. “That being said, what’s the deal with Seal Team Six outside?”

“That’s strictly need-to-know,” said Bishop, “and guess what, you don’t have that kind of clearance.”

You continued your journey through the vent accompanied by the uneasiness in your stomach. This Bishop dude seemed calm and rational but that didn’t make him any less dangerous. You knew that Donatello was in trouble.

“I’m only going to ask you this once,” cautioned Bishop “what are you doing here?”

“That’s a little unfair don’t you think, why should I share if you aren’t going to?” Donatello asked. “Here’s an idea, how about we trade information. You go first.”

“Make all the jokes you want, it doesn’t matter, I’ll get all of my questions answered in due time. Under my brand of interrogation, eventually everyone talks.” You gasped, was this dude talking about torturing Donatello? Well, you certainly couldn’t let that happen.

 Distracted by this sudden realization, you failed to notice a weak vent connector and it gave way under your weight. You fell, through the ceiling, hitting your left shoulder full-force against a science table, dislocating it. You suppressed your urge to scream and wrapped your good hand around the joint in a futile attempt to ease the pain. You gritted your teeth. You had to pull yourself together. Donatello needed a distraction and you were the only one who could provide it.

A quick scan of your surroundings told you that you were in the dissection lab, not ideal but you searched the room for anything you could use, anyway. Off to the left was a glass cabinet filled with wet specimen. You opened the cabinet and frowned at the dissected remains of a frog, forever trapped inside a jar for all to see. It served as a reminder of what the EPF would reduce you and Donatello to if you didn’t escape.

You grabbed the frog jar and two other preserved animals, twine, a scalpel and a Bunsen burner, and went to work creating an improvised explosive device. Using the twine, you tied the specimen jars together (which wasn’t an easy task with one arm), then poked a few holes in the lids with the scalpel and set the bomb on top of the wire gauze. Finally, you placed the burner beneath the wire gauze and lit the flame. You only had a few minutes to get out of the room before your distraction became an accidental suicide.

You rushed over to the window and tried to open it only to discover that it was painted shut. Dang it! You looked back at your bomb and noticed a thin layer of vapor forming. You had to get out, now. But how? You saw a fire extinguisher in the corner but with one arm you couldn’t hope to swing it hard enough to break the glass.

“Hey, ____ you there? What happened earlier? Are you okay?” Donatello asked in a hushed tone.

“I’m fine… more or less… just found a really fast way out of the vent.” You answered. “Say, hypothetically, how would someone sneak out a window if its painted shut and they only have the use of one arm?”

“Well, they could just remove the silicone seal around the edges of the pane and the glass should fall right out.” He said. “Wait a minute… what happened to your arm?”

“Relax. It’s okay, it’s just a little bit… dislocated at the moment.”

“What!” he whispered sharply. “Stay where you are, I’ll come get you as soon as I can.”

“I’m fine, really.” You said. “But I’m creating a diversion for you so I’ll meet you outside.” You grabbed the scalpel and quickly cut through the silicone around the window and the pane fell away. Score! You jumped out the window just in time to avoid being blown to bits and huddled beneath the window to avoid shrapnel. Heh. Awesome.

After making sure the coast was clear you skirted along the edges of the building until you came to the school’s quad. The school gates were wide open so you psyched yourself up to make a run for it. You took one step but stopped when a ninja star embedded itself in the ground beneath your feet. What the? You looked up and saw Donatello’s silhouette standing on the rooftop of the neighboring building.

“There are two snipers on the roof above you. If you try to make that run you won’t make it far.” advised Donatello.

“How did you know I was going to make a run for it?”

“I have two reckless brothers, I know what it looks like when someone is about to do something stupid.” he said. “Give me a moment, I’ll take care of them.”

Donatello threw two well-aimed ninja stars at the snipers, jamming the barrel of each rifle so that they couldn’t fire. While the EPF snipers were trying to figure out what was going on, you made your way across the quad and out into the streets of New York. After running for a few blocks you ducked into an alley to catch your breath.

Donatello dropped down next to you. Startled, you began furiously swinging the scalpel at him, “Whoa! It’s just me.” He said, knocking the tiny knife from your hand with a well-placed block.

“Donnie?” Relief washed over you like a cold shower and you collapsed into his strong arms. He brought his arms up around you and gave you a reassuring squeeze. There was that lovely scent again. You wanted to take a deep breath but decided against it, he was a turtle, what the heck was wrong with you? You pulled away quickly, hoping that he wouldn’t find the action too strange.

“How did that happen?” he asked, nodding toward your dangling arm.

“I fell through the vent and hit it on the corner of a desk.” You admitted.

“Can I see it?” he asked, reaching out to touch it but you jerked away, you knew this trick.

“No, don’t touch it, it hurts.”

“I’m not going to do anything I just want to see.” A likely story.

“Well, you see with your eyes not your hands.” You pointed out cowering away from him.

“Okay, Okay.” He lifted his hands in surrender and changed the subject. “So that explosion. Was that, by any chance, the diversion you were talking about?” He asked, slowly making his way closer to you.

“Yeah, I sort of made an IED. I thought it would help you get away from that Bishop guy.”

“An IED?” he was baffled “That’s a life prison sentence. And, here you were scared of getting caught for just sneaking into the science building? I don’t understand you.” He said.

“Well, when it comes to life and death, some things are more important.” You said.

“That’s true.” He paused, lost in thought, his eyes continuously drifting toward your arm. “So your IED, tell me about it. I’m always interested in what people create.”

“Oh this is awesome. When I fell I landed in the dissection lab and when I saw the wet specimen I remembered that formaldehyde is explosive.” You explained.

“Of course, formalin is used to preserve wet specimen. So, you heated up the solution and waited for the vapor to interact with the fire and” He grabbed hold your dislocated arm without warning and on the word, “BOOM!” quickly shoved your arm back into place with an audible and very painful pop.

You cried out as white hot pain surged through your body and you glared at him, feeling betrayed. “I’m sorry but I had to do that.” He soothed a finger over your shoulder and it sent a tingle down to the tips of your fingers. “You okay?” his genuine concern was proof that he meant you no real harm and your anger dissipated.

“Yeah…Thanks” You hissed through the remainder of the pain.

“I should be thanking you. Your distraction worked and I was able to get away from Bishop because of you.” He said.

You beamed, well that made it all worth it. “All in a day’s work.” You said.

“Mm-hmm, just don’t make it a habit. I wouldn’t want you to actually lose a limb.” He smiled then held out his hand to you. “Let’s go home.” You agreed quickly; that was the best plan he had all night.

The two of you headed back down into the sewers and heard a couple new voices coming from the lair. “April’s here.” Donatello said, dropping your hand. You couldn’t help but notice his pace quicken and you felt a flash of jealousy but it only lasted for a second.

Pushing through the turnstiles you saw April O’Neal and Casey Jones sitting with the other Turtles in the conversation pit. Just what were they doing here? Not that you particularly minded them as people, it was just that they usually hung around with Irma. If they happened to mention you to her then you’d be in serious trouble. Thankfully, there was a low probability of them recognizing you for two reasons. One, because you were a turtle now. And, two because, between balancing high school and college work you didn’t have much time for social interaction.

“Neo-Turtle!” Michelangelo was at your side in an instant, lifting you up in favor of carrying you down to meet the others. “Epic, now that D and Neo-Turtle are here, we can have an awesome game night.”

“Game night? I’m really tired.” Even though game night sounded really fun you, didn’t want to risk having to talk to April and Casey more than was necessary. “I’ve had a long night, I don’t think I’m up for playing games.”

Mikey pulled out his secret weapon and his eyes grew into large blue pools of sadness, it was the most powerful puppy dog eyes attack you’d ever seen. “Play with us, please?” Your resolve crumbled when he dragged out the _e_ in please.

“Okay,” You caved, “One game.”

“Score.” He said.

April shook her head at Mikey’s antics and said, “Hi, I’m April and this is Casey.” She gestured toward the hockey loving teen and he gave you a curt nod. “The turtles told us about your mutation and about your missing mentor. We’ll do everything we can to help you.”

“Thank you.” You said.

April tilted her head to the side, curiosity written all over her features. “You know, this might sound weird but you look familiar. Have we met somewhere before?”

 


	10. Raphael 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Might be a tad violent for some of you, just a warning.

* * *

You learned firsthand why they called him Grinder as your shell began to crack beneath the pressure of his massive heel. “This is just pathetic.” he laughed, “How am I supposed to build my reputation when. you. wont. fight. back?” He asked, emphasizing each word by digging his heel into your back.

“Ooo, looks like Grinder’s going with his signature move.” The commentator said. “This is the end folks!”

Then, you heard a few familiar voices as they instigated a chant, it was a slow build and you couldn’t make out the words, but as the chant gained more voices you heard, “Lift the cage!”

Huh? The cage, among other things, noting Grinders foot, was the only thing keeping you from escaping. Why on earth would they lift the cage? Idiots. But, to your surprise, the cage lifted, retreating to an unknown place in the ceiling.

With the ring free and open, relief washed over you, if you could manage to get out from under Grinder then you could escape. Like Raphael said, survive and get away.  

Then, someone hurled a crowbar into the ring. The rusty tool whooped through the air with such speed that its curved claw got stuck in the floor upon impact, stopping just short of your face. “Shell’em, Grinder!” The previous owner of the crowbar called.

Grinder pulled the crowbar free with one swift yank, taking a bit of the floor up as he did. “Well, I was going to grind you to dust but who am I to disappoint the fans.” He leaned down, “Any last words, turtle?” he asked, offering you a toothy yellow grin.

“Yeah, just a few words of advice,” You said, “leaning over like that might throw you off balance!” you rolled your body to the side and Grinder lost his footing, falling against the ropes beyond.

“Looks like you got some fight in you, after all.”  Grinder said. “Too bad it’s not enough to beat me.” He turned, bounced off the ropes, and used the momentum to kick you to the opposite side of the ring.

Before you could recover, Grinder lifted you up by your wrist and let you dangle helplessly. You struggled and tried to kick Grinder but all he had to do was hold you at arm’s length to get you out of range. “Put me down, you overgrown stuffed animal!”

Grinder laughed and tapped the crowbar against your shell, “I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve always wanted to see what’s under a turtle’s shell.” Grinder threw your body to the ground.

You bounced a few times and landed on your stomach a few inches from the sidelines. Your escape was so tantalizingly close but you were too dazed to move; it was like your brain had been run through a blender and subsequently poured back into your head through your ear.

“I thought I told you not to stop fighting.” said a voice that sounded a lot like Raphael’s. You hummed, it was comforting to think about him, a goofy smile tugged your lips upward. “Idiot, why the shell are you smiling?” Huh? You lifted your head and saw Raphael standing next to the ring wearing a trench coat that did little to hide who he was. “Don’t just lie there.” He said.

Grinder headed toward you once more, poised to jam the hook of the crowbar beneath your carapace, ready to pry it from your body. Raphael tossed off is disguise, and before his coat even hit the ground he was in the ring, blocking Grinder’s attack with his sai.

“Another turtle?” Grinder’s mouth crept into a slow smile. “Well, ain’t this my lucky day. I’m gonna make a pair of matching chairs from your hides.” Grinder applied a bit more pressure to his weapon and Raphael’s foot began sliding; it was obvious that Grinder had the advantage in strength.

Then, Grinder hooked the crowbar between the prongs of one sai and wrench it out of Raphael’s hand, it flew across the ring and landed a few feet away. But, your red clad hero didn’t give up, instead he focused holding Grinder back with both hands his remaining sai. “Oh, trying to protect them, huh? What are you, lovers or something?” Grinder said. “Disgusting.”

“Someone as ugly as you should be careful about using words like disgusting.” Raphael shoved Grinder back a few steps after he gained a rush of power. It wasn’t much but it was enough for Raphael to land a right hook to Grinder’s face.

Grinder snarled, allowing his animal half to take over, and when he turned back to face Raphael you saw true rage in his bear eyes. “You know what?” Grinder said to Raphael, “I’m going to make you watch while I skin your mate alive and **then** I’m gonna kill you.”

Grinder lunged for you but Raphael shifted his body just enough to block Grinder’s attack. Unfortunately, Raphael’s new position left him vulnerable to attack, which Grinder happily exploited by whipping the crowbar across Raphael’s face. “Wait your turn!” Grinder ordered.

This was bad. Raphael couldn’t focus on fighting Grinder when he had to worry about you. “Stop it!” You managed to push yourself up onto all fours only to have Grinder hammer kick you back down to the ground.

“Ugh, What’s the matter,” Raphael’s voice was strained as he peeled himself up off the ground. “too scared to fight someone who can actually kick your ass?” At that, Grinder pounced on Raphael and began punching him relentlessly.

Adrenaline kicked in and you dragged your screaming body across the ring to retrieve Raphael’s forgotten sai. You picked it up, and through sheer force of will you stood up, ran toward Grinder, and stabbed him as hard as you could.

With a cry, Grinder stumbled back and ripped the sai from his flesh. He tossed it to the ground and thrusted his fist toward you, but it never made contact.

 Fully armed once more, Raphael had Grinder’s wrist trapped between the tines of both of his sais. Raphael’s eyes were pure white, deadly, as he gave his weapons a sharp twist in opposite directions. Grinder’s wrist broke and you could hear every agonizing crack. Ugh.

But, Raphael wasn’t finished. He leapt onto the top rope and bounced into the air, bringing the butt of his sai down on Grinder’s head. Grinder’s eyes rolled back and he fell forward, unconscious. Raphael landed next to you and scooped you up in his arms.

By this time, the crowd was throwing death threats and profanities your way for ruining their joyous celebration. How dare you, you thought bitterly.

 Raphael jumped out of the ring and carried you across the warehouse, ducking and dodging, as a hailstorm of bullets and other projectiles began raining down upon you.

“Raph! This way!” You heard Casey say as he ushered you out a side door. “Keep going, I’ll make sure they don’t follow.” Casey hopped into the cab of a nearby forklift; Two huge crates sat stacked on the forks. Casey lifted the forks as high as they would go and the forklift toppled over, effectively blocking your pursuers.

Raphael hoisted you up onto his back and so he could focus on climbing the neighboring warehouse. Once you were on the roof you began to wonder what his plan was. You got your answer when he began running, his speed was nothing to mess with, and soon, he was headed for the edge of the building. You barely had time to scream for him to watch out, before he took a mighty leap across the alley, landing on the next roof.

This harrowing mode of transportation lasted a few blocks before Raphael finally stopped to let you down. You backed away from him, your legs shaking uncontrollably, and sat down on a nearby ledge. “That was crazy!” you said. “I think I’m gonna puke.”

Raphael wheeled around, his face, unreadable but tight. “No, what’s crazy is the fact that you were in the ring with Grinder! You could have been killed.” he burst. “What the shell were you doing at the Warehouse anyway!?”

“I saw you sneak out of the lair and I followed you.” Probably not the best thing to admit but you couldn’t bring yourself to lie to him, not after creating so much chaos.

“You did what? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever—" his voice got caught in his throat; Hand clutching his side, Raphael crumpled down to one knee as sharp short puffs of air escaped his lips. “Shit.”

“Raphael?” you sank down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “What’s wrong?” You asked, and that’s when you noticed rivers of blood seeping through his fingers, stark red against his green skin. “Oh No. Raphael!” you pulled his hand away and saw the end of a shiv sticking out of his side, just below his ribs.

“Must’ve got me when the crowd started throwing stuff.” He whispered, “It’s not a big deal…” He reached up to remove the foreign object from his body.

You swatted his hand away, “Don’t touch it! We need to take care of this properly.”

“Lair’s only a few blocks from here.” He wheezed.

“Are you nuts? You can’t seriously be thinking about building jumping in that condition.” He was lucky to jump as many buildings as he had a few moments ago.

“What choice do I have? Donnie’s the only one who can fix me up. And besides, you can’t drag me through the alleyways and remain unseen.” He said. “So rooftop running it is, let’s go.” He made a move that told you to hop on his back.

“No! Please wait,” you said. He rolled his eyes impatiently but waited nonetheless. “I can take care of this, I just need…” you glanced around and spotted a solution at the bottom of a neighboring building. “There’s a clinic!” You said. “I’ll can steal the supplies I need from there.” Your face dropped as anxiety raked through your veins.

“Right…” Raphael said dryly. “Well, the face you are making doesn’t exactly fill me with a whole lot of confidence in your thieving abilities. I can tell you ain’t never stole anything in your life.” He was right, the last time you attempted to steal something, you were just a kid, but the lesson you took away from the experience was more than enough to keep you from doing it again.  

“Maybe not, but sometimes doing the right thing means you have to do something bad.” You said, and as much as the idea of stealing from a clinic left a bitter taste in your mouth, you couldn’t see any way around it.

“You’re nuts and it’s an unnecessary risk. Forget it.” he said.

“Why are you being so stubborn? You’re allowed to save my life but I can’t save yours?” You noticed Raphael’s eyes dilate, he was trying to hold back how much pain he was in. “I’m not arguing about this, and it’s not as if you can stop me at the moment anyway.”

He rolled his eyes, “And I’m stubborn.” After a short pause he gave in and said, “If you ain’t back within ten minutes I’m going in after you, even if I bleed to death.”

“Ten minutes.” you said. “Got it.”

* * *

 

Nine minutes and fifty-eight seconds later you returned with a bag of medical supplies. “Made it.” you announced triumphantly but when there was no response from Raphael, you began to panic. You saw him propped up against the wall, sleeping with his chin resting on his plastron. “No, Raph, don’t fall asleep.”

You hurried to his side and carefully moved him into the recovery position before shoving your three fingered hands into a pair of gloves. You continued to try and coax Raphael from the grips of sleep while you readied the disinfectant. You carefully removed the rusty shiv and blood gushed from the wound. You quickly cleared it up in order to assess the damage. The wound was pretty deep and its edges were already red with infection. Crap. “Please, No.”

You poured some disinfectant on a square of gauze and applied pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding. “You gotta wake up.” No response. “Come on Raph.” Again, no response.

Time to switch up your tactics, “I didn’t think you were this weak.” You provoked, your voice trembling. If anything happened to him you’d never forgive yourself.

“Who… you calling… weak?” His head lulled to the side so he could get a better look at you, his bright green eyes of his were hazy with pain.

“Oh, Raph.” You gave him a sympathetic smile and placed a gentle hand on his forehead. He was warm.

“_____” he slurred and the way your name rolled off his tongue sent a shiver down your spine. “You’re pretty… badass…” The last of Raphael’s words died in his throat as his body began convulsing.

 


	11. Michelangelo 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little long, I got carried away writing it.

 

 

* * *

You shared a second order of Pizza Gyoza with Michelangelo as he told you stories about his family and their harrowing adventures. The somber looked he’d just given you was but a memory; apparently, talking about his family was just the thing to put the genuine smile back on his face.

The conversation transitioned to Michelangelo doing impressions of each of his brothers, and when he did an impression of Raphael you nearly lost it. “Pretty good, huh?” he smiled. “Okay, I’m gonna do you.” he said, causing you to choke on your soda.

“Hmm, an impression of Neo-Turtle.” He trailed off, lost in thought. “Ah, got it.” He smirked and you weren’t sure you liked where his mind was headed, though, it probably wasn’t any worse than where yours was a second ago.

 “Hi, I’m _____, and I have an unhealthy obsession with protecting notebooks from squishy brain aliens.” He winked, “It sure was a good thing Mikey was there to save me.” He continued. “Boy, is he ever dreamy, I’d like to ask him out on a date.” 

“First of all, that sounds nothing like me,” you protested, “and for the record, that notebook could have provided us with a lead.”

“Yeah, maybe, but it wasn’t worth risking your life.” he said

 “And just so you know, technically, this is a date.” You added.

“No, it’s not.” He said. “This is just two friends hanging out.”

“This is the best kind of date.” You said, “I mean, real dates are terrible, they’re stressful and everyone is trying to project the best version of themselves and still, most of the time you end up with a real creepazoid. Haven’t you ever been on a date before?” as soon as the words left your mouth you felt like a real heel, of course he hadn’t. “I’ll go on a real date with you.” You said, without a moment’s hesitation.

“Really?”

“Yeah, we’ll do it up all classic too. Dinner and a movie.” You said.

He perked up, “Wait, I have a better idea, how about a carnival date at Luna Park, Coney Island? It’s my favorite place in all of New York, well except for Antonio’s.” Murakami cleared his throat in the background, “and Murakami’s eh-heh.”

“That sounds fun, Let’s do it.”

* * *

 

One harrowing ride attached to the outside of a subway train later, you were standing in front of Luna Park. “Uh, Mikey? How are we supposed to get in and keep people from seeing us?” You asked, wondering, how in the hour commute, you didn’t think to ask before.

“We don’t need to worry about that.” He said. “Let’s go.” He stepped into the light of a nearby streetlamp.

You yanked him back before anyone could see him, “Are you nuts? You mean for us to walk in without disguises?”

“We ninja practice the art of invisibility and that means being able to hide in plain sight. Check it.” He pointed toward the park entrance, a line of circus performers, dressed in elaborate costumes, headed into the park. “We’ll sneak in with the sideshow.”

“I don’t know about this, Mikey. Maybe we can think of something else.” And besides… you didn’t care much for clowns.

“It’ll be fine, have I ever stirred you wrong?” You thought back to your poor smoldering apartment. “Don’t answer that.” Michelangelo quickly added. “Just trust in ol’ Michelangelo.” he said, extending his hand toward you.

You placed your hand in his, and together, you caught up with the performers. You fell in line with a colorfully dressed, round woman with a fabulous beard. “Hello dearies,” she said, “I’ve never seen you two before, you must be the interns. I’m the Beatrice, the Bearded Lady.” She gave you a small curtsy.

“Nice to meet you,” you said, “I’m Neo-Turtle, and this is…” Ha, now it was time to enact your revenge upon Michelangelo, time to see how he liked being given a new name.

“I’m the Turtle Titan!” he said, his eye flashing knowingly, _nice try_.

“What wonderful stage names, they certainly match those divine turtle costumes you’re wearing.” Complemented Beatrice.

“Thank you.” You beamed.

“Yeah, and your beard is most excellent, B.” Michelangelo said.

“Ha-ha. Oh, how sweet of you!” Beatrice stroked her beard lovingly and then her face lit up. “Oh! I have something for you.” she retrieved two wristbands from her pocket and handed one to each of you. “As part of the circus, you get free admission to the park and unlimited rides.”

“Awesome! Thank you so much.” You said.

“Yo, Thanks, B.”

“No problem.” Beatrice said, “Now, you have a little time before the show starts, so, you two enjoy the park.” She practically shoved you both toward the midway before joining the other performers as they continued their journey to the circus tent.

“See, what did I tell you?” Mikey said.

“We’re lucky that the real interns didn’t show up,” you said. Still, his plan worked. “I shouldn’t have doubted you, Mikey. This is so cool.”

“You ain’t seen the half of it yet.” He said. “First things first.” He pointed toward an old rollercoaster across the park. “You can’t visit Luna Park without riding the mother of all rollercoasters: The Cyclone!” He pulled you toward the ride, “2640 feet of track, 12 drops, all thrill!” His excitement was so contagious that you almost forgot about how heights gave you the shaky legs.

The line for the Cyclone was about an hour long and by the time it was your turn, you were sure you didn’t want to ride. Michelangelo asking to hang back for the front row only added to your opposition. Still, you didn’t want to disappoint him, so you decided to suck it up.

Once you were seated, Michelangelo pulled the lap bar down and after a few minutes the car ascended. Soon, you were 85 feet above the ground and the tracks had disappeared behind a downward curve. “Nope.” You began to wonder if keeping Michelangelo happy was worth taking a ride on the death coaster. You held onto the lap bar and shut your eyes. Nope, nope, nope, nope.

Your inner chanting came to a stop when you felt something warm on your hand, three fingers wrapped around your own, as Michelangelo held your hand. “I gottchu.” He reassured.

A second later, the car tipped over the edge, speeding at 60 miles an hour at a 60-degree angle, but you didn’t feel an ounce of fear. In fact, you felt weightless and it wasn’t because of the g-force.

The ride only lasted a few minutes and when you got out of the car you were still holding Michelangelo’s hand. “That was pretty fun.” You said.

“Sure was.” Michelangelo agreed “…You have an awesome death grip, by the way.” Michelangelo said, wigging his fingers.

You dropped his hand. “Oh, I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” you asked.

He blew a raspberry in the air and waved off your question with a flick of his other hand. “I’m fine.” And to prove his point he scooped up your hand once more. “On an unrelated topic, let’s put the rest of the rides on hold and play some games.” He said.

He pulled you across the park toward another section of the midway and came to a stop in front of the ring toss game. “I’ve always wanted to play this game.” He said.

As you approached the ring toss stand, the operator eyed Michelangelo like he’d found an easy mark and shoved a bucket of red rings toward him. “Test your luck, all you gotta do is ring five bottles, only five dollars for twenty rings”

“It’s not luck, it’s all skill.” Michelangelo paid the man and pulled the bucked closer before grabbing a fistful of rings. He fanned them out and released them with a flick of his wrist. Using his ninja speed, he repeated the process until all of the rings were gone. You watched in awe as he ringed twenty bottles in perfect succession.

“What the? I’ve never seen that.” the game operator said, slacked jawed. “Well, um, gee…choose any prize you want.” Michelangelo scanned the prizes and pointed at a small stuffed turtle. “You sure that’s the one you want?” asked the operator, surprised that Michelangelo would choose a first tier prize after such a victorious battle.

“Yep, you might say I have a soft spot for turtles.” Michelangelo said.

“That was amazing, Mikey!” you said. “How did you do that?”

“Magic.” Michelangelo answered with a twinkle of mischief in his eye.

After receiving his prize, he handed it to you. “For you,” he said, “so, you never forget me when this is all over.” You smiled halfheartedly, the idea that this would all come to an end stung at your heart. You hugged the stuffed turtle tightly, as if doing so would leave a permanent imprint of the memory on your chest.

Before you got the chance to tell Michelangelo that you would never forget him, you were interrupted by a man dressed in colorful business attire, complete an elaborate top hat. “Hey! You two! You’re the interns, right? I need you to go on in the Bearded Lady’s place.”

“Slow down, Ringmaster dude, did something happen to B?” Michelangelo asked.

“She twisted her ankle backstage.” The Ringmaster said, “I’ve been looking for you two, it says on my sign up sheet that you guys are experts of the flying trapeze. Is that right?’

“Yep.” Michelangelo said, you elbowed him in the arm.

“Great, follow me.” The Ringmaster started walking toward the circus tent.

“What are you doing, Mikey?” you whispered so that only he could hear. “We can’t do this, the flying trapeze takes years of practice. It’s too dangerous.”

“We have to, B was super nice to us.” He said. “Don’t you worry, I’ll take care of everything.” you nodded but you weren’t too sure about this one.

* * *

 

“Ladies and Gentlemen, a round of applause, making their highflying debuted, please welcome Turtle Titan and Neo-Turtle!” the ringmaster said, drawing a burst of cheerful applause from the eager crowd. Little did they know, they were about to watch someone plummet to their death.

You were standing on a platform, 20 feet in the air, holding onto the trapeze bar so tightly that your knuckles turned a lighter shade of green. Across the stage, on a similar platform, Michelangelo mirrored your stance, though he didn’t look half as ready to barf as you did.

Paralyzed with fear, you just stood there. Silence filled the tent and you knew everyone was looking at you. Then, Michelangelo leaped off of his platform and flipped onto the bar, swinging upside down by his legs. As he came forward, he reached for you. “Come on, Neo-Turtle.”

You dipped your toes over the edge of the platform which only renewed your urge to throw up, it was just so high. Ugh. Then, the ground started swirling beneath you. You experienced a moment of vertigo that sent you over the edge of your platform. “No!” You swung through the air, holding onto your trapeze bar for dear life.

“Let go.” You heard Michelangelo said. Was he nuts?!  “I’ll catch you, trust me.” He said. The conviction in his voice lead you to do as he said, and upon your next swing you let go of the bar. Michelangelo caught you by your wrists. “Nice, now, get ready.” He said.

Get ready!? Ready for what? Was he going to let you go? Before you could voice a protest, he swung you up into the air and you landed, in a stand, on his shoulders. He held onto your ankles and the crowd started cheering.

“On the count of three I’m going to flip you, all you have to do is hold your arms out in front of you.” He said. “One, two, three!” As promised, Michelangelo vaulted you up into the air and you did a double flip before grabbing onto your trapeze. You landed back on your platform and watched as Michelangelo did a few flips of his own, twisting 360 degrees before landing on his platform.

The show continued this way for half an hour and when it was over, the Ringmaster began singing your praises. “That was stupendous.” He said, “I’ve never seen such tricks. Once you finish your internship, what do you say, you join us?”

You looked at Michelangelo and smiled. “What do you say, Turtle Titan? Should we run away and join the circus?” You laughed, but his smile was distant, as if he was seriously considering it.

 

* * *

Later that evening, you wandered down to the beach with Michelangelo, your heart still beating a million miles an hour. Still. “That was terrifying, but I have to admit, I’ve never had so much fun in my life.” You confessed.

“Ha, yeah, it was pretty epic.” Michelangelo laughed, “You should have seen your face when I tossed you into the air, it was like this:” He made non-too flattering face and started laughing harder.

“Excused me, that was not funny, I was scared out of my mind.” You shoved him playfully and he stumbled off the pier. He reached for your wrist in order to stabilize himself but it wasn’t enough and soon you both tumbled into the sand. You landed on top of him and he started laughing again. What a wonderful sound.

You studied his face, the lights from the park danced across his boyish features. His laughter faded when you started trailing your fingers across his face, connecting his freckles between invisible lines. His eyes closed and you could tell he liked the attention. You smiled, surprised by the softness of his reptilian skin. Your exploration brought your fingers to the corner of his mouth.

“Having fun?” he asked, knocking you out of your trance.  

“Ah, Sorry.” You went to push yourself up but his arms encircled your waist, effectively stopping you.

“You know, that was a pretty sweet date.” He mused, “I kinda want to do it again.” you blushed, it was nice to hear someone complement your dating abilities, though you never really stuck around to the end of a date before. (Thank you fake emergency call app).

“Yeah, it was.” You agreed. “I’m kind of sad that it’s over.” Death deifying stunts and all.

“But wait, it can’t be over yet, right? I feel like we’re missing one crucial detail.” He pondered, “Something that happens at the end of a date.”

Was he talking about a kiss? Your body flushed, you did kinda want to kiss him. He wet his lips and you began to wonder what it would feel like to have them on yours. “you mean a K—"

“Nah, I can’t remember.” He pulled you up with him and dusted the sand from his legs. “Well, I guess, if you can’t remember then it isn’t important, right?”

“Right.” You said, much to your disappointment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to all my readers and reviewers, new and old, I am so glad you are liking this story so far. I'd like to make something you all enjoy so if there's anything you want to see, let me know and i might incorprate it. Happy Reading!


	12. Leonardo 3

* * *

It was a clear shot to the street from the alley and you nearly reached it when a ninja landed in front of you, stopping you and your pursuers. “Found you, _____.” A young woman dressed in full ninja garb pointed her tanto knife in your direction, behind you, your pursuers gave her a low bow.

“You know my real name?” You asked.

“I know more than that and I knew you’d seek refuge with the Turtles. Like kinds stick together, after all.” She advanced. “So, I staged a robbery across town to draw them out, to see if they knew anything about you.” She said “But, of course, they wouldn’t give me any information.”

“Then how did you find me?” you asked, taking a step back.

“I have eyes and ears all over the city. You should be careful about who you let take your picture.” She pulled up her phone and showed you the photo that Spiderman had taken earlier.

The ninja took careful steps around you, sizing you up. “Funny, there doesn’t seem to be anything special about you. So, I wonder what Kraang wants with you.”

“You’re working for Kraang?” had that psycho alien resorted to hiring trained assassins to find you?

“Ugh! Repulsive.” She said. “No, we just happen to share a common interest.”  She ran her eyes over the expanse of your body and you felt violated. “Enough chit chat.” She held out her palm and closed her hand into a fist, “Footbots, attack!”  Your pursuers were joined by ten more of their kind -ninja with buggy eyes and metallic voices- Fortunately, your  _chit chat_  bought you enough time to make an opening for yourself so you made a run for it.

You ran through the streets, seeking any opening you could find, anything that would provide you refuge from whatever fate the ninja had in store for you. You rounded a corner and found yourself in a familiar playground. You could lose them in the alley beyond. Spurred on by the promise of escape you ran through the swing set and hurried to the alley.

Fast as lightening a footbot landed in front of you drawing your attention upward where you noticed that a few of the footbots were chasing you via the rooftops.

You backed away from the footbot in front of you but you were no match for its speed. It backhanded you across the face, sending you rolling to the left, you slammed the back of your head against a nearby dumpster.

Sharp pain ran down your spine and ended at your toes. You reached your hand back and felt blood oozing from the back of your skull. You managed to stave of unconsciousness and pulled yourself to your feet, using the dumpster for support. The bots, surrounding you now, closed in. This was the end.

Then, like an angle of death, Leonardo dropped from the sky, his dark figure outlined by moonlight. He landed gracefully in front of you with his swords outstretched on either side of him. Leonardo lifted his head and stared up at your pursuers.  In a flash he sliced the closest ninja from shoulder to belly. Leonardo pulled his katana free with a slow metallic ring.

The other footbots closed in on him and Leonardo took them down one by one, his dance of death only lasted a few minutes and he masterfully dispatched the final the footbot before turning toward you. You gasped at the sight of him, droplets of oil splashed across his plastron and face making him look dangerous. Savage. 

Before he could say anything, shuriken cut through the air toward him. He ducked low to the ground doing the splits as he avoided them. He turned his head toward the rooftops, his eyes small white slits of pure focus. You managed to draw your gaze from him and follow his line of sight.

The female ninja pointed her tanto knife at Leonardo and gave him a beautiful smile. “Your fighting style never fails to amaze me, Leo.” She said, jumping down from the five story building like she was hopping off of the curb to the street. “It’s impressive that you managed to make it across town so quickly.”

“It didn’t take me long to figure out that it was a trap.” Leonardo said. “I think, deep down, you wanted me to come here and stop you, because you know what you're doing isn’t right, Karai.”

“Ha, you still spouting nonsense about me having a good side?” she scoffed. “Please, I just didn’t have the energy to set up a flawless trap.”

“Right.” Leonardo said dryly. “What is it that you want, Karai?” Leonardo asked, his voice softer but still harsh.

“I heard a rumor that there was another turtle in the city.” Karai said, eying you again, “Looks like it’s true.”

“And where did you hear that?” Leonardo asked, grabbing your wrist in order to shove you behind him. You huddled behind him, holding on to the edges of his carapace.

“Oh, around.” Karai leisurely strolled toward Leonardo, you could sense that his stance had changed even though he hadn’t physically moved.

“Oh yeah, where?” Leonardo challenged.

Police sirens could be heard in the distance, approaching quickly, you could already see the splash of red and blue against the graffiti covered walls. “The cops.” Karai muttered, angry that she was interrupted. She sighed and pointed her knife at Leonardo, “This isn’t over, Leo.” Karai threw down a smoke bomb and when the smoke cleared she was gone.

“We agree on that, at least.” Leonardo said. He yanked you away from the playground, taking you down the alley you’d initially intended to escape through and lifted a manhole cover he found there. Letting you climb down first, the two of you entered the sewers and as you headed toward the lair, Leonardo didn’t say a word to you.

The air between you and Leonardo was still tense when you finally reached the lair and you figured you ought to say something since this was your fault. You opened your mouth to apologize but it died in your throat at the look Leonardo was tossing at you. His face was crinkled up in the center, his blue eyes shifting from side to side slightly, he frowned deeply.

He lifted a hand and gently grazed a finger over your shoulder, he pulled his hand back and glared when it came away with blood, stark red against his emerald skin. Upon further study, he discovered that the blood was coming from the back of your head, it had been bleeding this whole time, leaving a trail of red that streamed down your neck and shoulders.

“You should see Donnie.” Leonardo said, not giving you a chance to protest as he dragged you across the lair and through the threshold of the lab.

Donatello was up in an instant. “Great! You found _____, I was worried...” he paused at the sight of red coating your skin. “What happened?”

“Turns out I was right about Karai setting a trap for us. They wanted to kidnap _____”

“What for?” Donatello blushed at the way that sounded, "Not that you aren’t worthy enough to kidnap..." You couldn’t help but laugh at his backpedaling.

Relieved that you weren't upset with him, Donatello gently took your hand and led you toward a makeshift hospital bed situated in the corner of his lab.

“Fix ______ up and then we can ask questions.” Leonardo said, leveling a glance in your direction. He was going to get some answers out of you. Not that you knew why a gang of ninja wanted you… then again, your connection to Kraang seemed to be a factor in Karai’s decision to come after you. "I'll be in the dojo." he muttered before leaving you alone with his brainy brother.

**Later…**

Michelangelo leaned forward and watched Donatello stitch up the back of your head, “Ooo, thirteen stitches. That beats my record by two.” Michelangelo said, “That deserves an award.” He handed you a cheese pop.

You took the frozen treat and yanked off its wrapper, “Thanks but I’m fine not beating that particular record.” You said bitterly, wincing as Donatello tied off the string. You bit into the cheese pop. 

“I heard you held your own against Karai.” Donatello spoke softly. “That’s pretty impressive.”

“I think hold my own is a little strong. All I did was run away and if Leo hadn’t shown up when he did, I’d have more than this gash on my head.” You admitted.

Raphael stuck his head into the lab, “Leo said he wants to see you in the dojo when you're done.” a wave of anxiety hit you, this was it.

You left the lab, passing Splinter on your way, he was looking at you with no expression on his face as he simply stroked his beard. You smiled politely and gave him a slight bow of acknowledgement.

You walked into the Dojo and spotted Leonardo with your Bokken in his hands. “Leo…” you began.

“You were reckless.” Interrupted Leonardo. “What were you doing out there?”

The color drained from your face, the VHS… you left it in the alley. Leonardo’s prized season zero video tape, made even more priceless by your efforts, now forgotten. You’d risked your and Leonardo’s life for no reason. “I went to the he Space Heroes Convention. And I…” you bit your lip, it was time to fess up. “I took the Season zero tape to get signed."

“Hold on.” the vein on Leo’s forehead began to pulse and you could tell that was restraining himself. “Let’s not even get into the fact that you stole my tape.” He said. “Are you saying that you went out in public, on purpose, looking like that?” he seethed, “You understand that you put my family at risk by exposing yourself. What if someone other than Karai saw you?”

“She wasn’t the only one who saw me.”  You admitted. “But tons of people were dressed up and they all liked my “costume”.” You said. “Okay, so a guy who happened to be working for Karai took my picture…”

“What?” He paused as if remembering something. “That’s why Karai left so abruptly.” He said, apparently connecting a piece of the puzzle that had eluded him earlier. “She got a text. She was waiting for you to show yourself at some point.” He looked at you pointedly, “What does she want with you?”

You couldn’t lie to him, not after what you’d done, and maybe the truth would put you back on his good side? “She wants me because Kraang wants me.” You said, his face tightened but you continued. “When I told you I came in contact with the mutagen I wasn’t telling the whole story.”

“What is the whole story?” Leonardo pressed, a little peeved.

“Kraang kidnapped me because he caught me snooping around for my mentor. He said that if I helped him catch you I could have my mentor back so I agreed. I didn’t expect him to turn me into a turtle mutant or that you guys actually existed. Halfway through my mutation I decided not to help Kraang and I managed to escape.” You kept your head down and suddenly your bokken came into view as Leonardo tossed it to the ground at your feet.

“Pick it up, we’re going to run drills.” He said.

You looked at your wooden sword then back at him. “You aren’t going to kick me out?”

“For what?” he asked.

“I agreed to help Kraang.”

“But you changed your mind and besides you’ve been here long enough to betray us if that’s what you were going to do.” Leonardo said with a shrug.  “And if you think that’s going to get you out of training you’ve got another thing coming.” He added. “That being said, you won’t mind running drills with me to make up for losing my Space Heroes tape.”

* * *

 

Serving out one of Leonardo’s punishments wasn’t an easy task, he had you running through the tunnels, practicing your stances, working out your thighs, and swinging your sword until you had blisters on your hands. Still it was a small price to pay for him to start talking to you again. And after a few hours he called time, you collapsed on the dojo floor, panting and numb all over.

“I’m impressed that you were able to keep up with me. He said handing you a bottle of water. “And I wouldn’t worry too much about the tape, I’m sure its somewhere safe.” He said, holding it up with one hand. “I saw it in the alley.”

You gasped, he had the damn thing this whole time, betrayal! “You’re a tyrant.”

“Just a little bit,” he winked and you just about lost it. You’d run drills until you literally died if it earned you another wink like that. “I appreciate the fact that you did this for me.” He said. “But next time just stay in the lair. Nothing is worth your life.” he offered you a kind smile and just like that things were okay again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the Kudos and Reviews, I didnt think this story would take off as well as it did. I appreciate all of you.
> 
> To get story updates or ask me questions follow me on that there social media.  
> Instagram: e.rose.grams  
> Tumblr and Twitter: e-rosewrites


	13. Donatello 3

* * *

“Greeting’s Turtles, Sir Malachi hath arrived!” Your attention was drawn toward the lair’s entrance, leaving April’s question unanswered. A mutant sparrow dressed in medieval garb hopped over the turnstiles with a flourish.  The tip of his claw staff hit the ground as he landed, as if he could possibly draw more attention to himself. “Let us enjoy-eth a rousing game of M&M.”

“Nah-uh, now way.” Raphael threw his hands up in the air, “I ain’t playing if you’re gonna talk like that all night.”

“Alright, fine.” Sir Malachi said, dropping his over-the-top Ren. Faire persona.

“M&M? You mean, Mazes and Mutants?” You said. “Seriously, that’s what we’re playing?” Suddenly, you weren’t so tired anymore, you’d always wanted to play a roleplaying game. “I am **so** in.”

A little while later, eight of you were seated around the makeshift table in the kitchen, you were sandwiched between Donatello and Michelangelo. As Maze Master, Sir Malachi sat at the head of the table behind a cardboard wall with a mural of the game painted on it.

“Okay, ______ thou art—” Sir Malachi began, but Raphael cleared his throat in an irritated manner, “I-I mean, **you are** Dragonborn and you came to join our adventurers in the last level of the maze when Sir Angelo released you from captivity. Honor is of utmost importance to you so you decided to help our heroes escape the maze.”

“Got it.” you said.

“Last time, our heroes fell through the floor above and landed in a hexagonal room; in the room there are two exits, one leads to a hallway and the other is blocked by a gate.” Malachi leaned over and drew the room, as he described it, on an erasable board in the center of the table. “Above the gate are four gems, each one represents a different element, Fire, Wind, Earth and Forest. On each of the remaining walls are portraits of different dimensions that coincide with the gems above the gated door.”

When Malachi was finished drawing out the play area he sat back and tapped his claw staff against the ground, releasing a light layer of smoke that grew thicker and thicker by the second. Soon, the entire kitchen was enveloped in a smoke so thick you couldn’t see an inch in front of your face. Panic threatened to engulf you but was quickly assuaged when you felt a large hand grab hold of yours.

“It’s alright.” Came Donatello’s soothing voice, “It’s only an illusion.” You understood what he meant when the smoke cleared to reveal that you were now standing in the hexagonal room that Malachi had just finished describing.

“How is this possible?” you asked.

“It came with Malachi’s mutation, he has the power to bring games to life. When we met him, he just wanted someone to play with, he went about it the wrong way but we came to an understanding and now we have game night and let him use his power to make the games more immersive.” And immersive it was, the sights, sounds and smells were close to, if not, the real thing.

“All right, guys.” Leonardo said, he was already examining the gems above the gated door. “I bet these light up when we complete a task.”

“Yeah, maybe we have to face whatever’s in these paintings.” Michelangelo said, and before anyone could stop him he pressed on the engraved nameplate beneath the forest portrait.

Suddenly, the portrait released a magnificent light and the forest scene inside came to life. Several large vines slithered out and snaked along the ground. One wrapped around Michelangelo’s ankle, yanking him into the portrait. Caught off guard and unprepared, the others were subsequently pulled in as well.

Even you were so distracted by what was happening that you failed to notice an errant vine coming to claim your own ankle. “Watch out!” Donatello dove at you, pushing you down to the ground and out of the way just in time. The two of you rolled into the hallway, across a threshold the vines could not cross. Pinned beneath Donatello, you watched as the vine retreated into the portrait.

“Thanks.” You breathed, “You saved me.”

“Yeah, I know it’s just a game but I’m still your guardian.” Through his smile you detected a hint of embarrassment. Yeah, the line was a bit cheesy but it made you feel high just the same.

Donatello helped you to your feet just in time for you to witness the portrait become solid once more, a clear sign that you would not be permitted entrance. “Guess we won’t be going that way.” You said, not that you wanted to.

“I guess we should continue down this hallway.” Donatello said, “Maybe we can find something that will help us.” And that’s when you noticed that the hallway didn’t quite match the rest of the maze as it was made of sleek white walls that carried currents of violet electricity through them.

You and Donatello followed the currents to the end of the hall, where you found a science lab. It was futuristic in design but the thousands of hieroglyphs that coated its walls gave it an ancient feeling.  

At the back of the lab, connected to a computer terminal in the center of the room, were three large ooze filled glass chambers. Resting peacefully inside each chamber were three mutants, who Donatello quickly named. “Dogpound, Fishface and Tigerclaw.”

“I don’t like this room. Let’s go back.” You said. Donatello nodded in agreement, but as soon as the two of you took a step to leave, a large stone wall fell from the ceiling effectively trapping you inside. “It’s a trap, do something, Donnie.”

“Me?” he asked.

“Yeah, you’re a wizard, Donnie.” You said doing your best impression of Harry Potter’s Hagrid, “Use your magic to get us out of here.” You said.

“I would but this room is comprised of technology so my magic is suppressed.” He explained.

“Well, what about the computer?” you asked as you took a seat at the terminal. You touched the mouse in order to revive the computer and it opened up, asking you for a password. “We need a password. Can you hack into it?”

“If this was real life, yeah, but, unfortunately, in this world my character can’t hack computers so we’ll need to figure out the password on our own.”

“That could take forever.” You said. “Where do we even start?”

“Well, remember this is a game so the password should be attainable, there are probably clues in this room.” He said.

As you went to get up and help Donatello look for clues, a chain wrapped around your waist, trapping you in your seat. You struggled but couldn’t free yourself. Then, the terminal did a quarter turn, activating a beacon above Dogpound’s chamber. The beacon bathed the lab in red light while the ooze drained, coating the floor in glowing green goop.

“Donnie… I don’t like this.” You didn’t know how right you were to feel that way until Dogpound burst through the glass. He pounded his fist into his other hand and snarled at Donatello. “I **really** don’t like this.” You said.

“It’ll be okay, I’ll keep him busy while you figure out that password.” Dogpound took a mighty leap over you and stuck his leg out in an attempt to kick Donatello, but he easily rolled to the left to avoid it.

Turning to your task, you noticed that the green goop had spread over the ground, getting caught in the grout lines of the tilted floor. Looking closely you saw that the goop reacted with the electric grid beneath the floor, revealing a strange symbol. You then looked at the keyboard in front of you, sure enough the symbol was depicted on one of the keys

“Donnie, you aren’t going to like this but I think we have to break open the rest of these chambers if we want the password.” You said.

“You’re right, I don’t like it.” He said, jamming the end of his magic staff into Dogpound’s stomach, which did nothing but anger the beast further. Dogpound wheeled back and threw a punch at Donatello at which point Donatello defected it with his staff. “Luckily this wand is about the size of my bo, my magic might be suppressed but my ninja skills aren’t.”

It was the first time you’d seen Donatello fight and it took your breath away, his movements were fluid as he twirled his staff this way and that, deflecting every attack Dogpound threw at him. Then Donatello switched to offense, stopping his bo before wheeling back to thrust the tip of his staff into Dogpound’s chest. The dog mutant let out a pathetic yelp before vanishing in a cloud of smoke.  

You didn’t have time to celebrate because the terminal did another quarter turn, releasing Fishface from his chamber. You typed in the second symbol as it appeared and turned your attention back to Donatello. Still in his death frenzy, Donatello made the first move and knocked Fishface across the room, the fish hit his head on the wall behind him and vanished.

“Holy, crap.” You said. “That was amazing.”

“Don’t get too excited, those two are child’s play compared to Tigerclaw.” Donatello warned. “Once that chamber opens, type in the password as fast as you can, Okay?” Duh, like you were going to do anything else.

The computer turned once more, your gaze remained focused on the ground beneath the chamber, your fingers hovering over the keys. You were ready. Lightning speed was the name of the game.

Tigerclaw burst through the chamber and rushed Donatello, grabbing him so hard that he lost hold of his magic staff. The momentum of the attack sent the two of them sailing across the room. You looked back to see that Tigerclaw had Donatello pinned to the wall by the neck.

“Donnie!” You quickly typed in the third symbol as it was revealed to you. The stone slab lifted and the chain that bound you fell away. You were finally free.

Wasting no time, you got out of your seat and grabbed Donatello’s wand on your way to liberated him from Tigerclaw’s hold. Lifting the staff high above your head you delivered a few stout whacks to the back of Tigerclaw’s head. It wasn’t enough to defeat him but he did release Donatello while he wheeled around to face you.

“Nice, kitty.” You said while backing away from Tigerclaw.

Tigerclaw hissed and leapt at you and just as he was about to scratch your face off an arrow hit him squarely in the chest, causing him to disintegrate. “Got’em!” You turned to see Michelangelo standing in the now opened doorway, his bow still aimed toward its target.

* * *

  **Later**

* * *

 

Upon Donatello’s insistence, you were given Donatello’s bed in which to sleep while he opted the sleep in his lab. Too tired to argue, you took him up on his offer and snuggled beneath his blankets, secretly appreciating the scent they gave off. “Good thing the others managed to get out of that portrait before we became cat food.” You said. “I honestly can’t remember a time when I’ve had so much fun.”

“You’re welcome to play with us any time.” Donatello offered. It was a nice gesture but it only made you sad to think that all of this would have to come to an end eventually. Even if you were welcome after you changed back, life would return to normal and you wouldn’t have time to join them for game night anyway.

The pain must’ve been written on your face because the next thing you knew, Donatello was seated at the edge of his bed, “is your arm bothering you?” he asked, mistaking your emotional pain for physical pain.  

“It’s a little numb,” you said, which wasn’t a lie, “it’s not a big deal.” But Donatello was having none of it, he held out his hand in a silent gesture that told you to give him your hand.

You pulled your hand from beneath the covers and dipped your fingers into his palm. He flipped your hand so it was palm up and ran a gentle finger down your forefinger to the center of your palm. A pleasurable buzzing tickled at the base of your neck as he did the same with your other fingers. “Can you feel that?” You nodded.

Only, what you were feeling was more than the sensation of touch, but that familiar ache within your heart. Because, of course you’d fall in love with a mutant turtle; not only that, he was a mutant turtle with a crush on April. How could you possibly compete with that?


	14. Raphael 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. Sorry it's been so long. I started Grad school last fall and I didn't take into account how hard it would be to work on six fics, a full time job and full time school. I am going to finish all my fics, it might take me a little longer but if you all bear with me it'll be worth it. Thanks for Reading!

Raphael’s body began shaking uncontrollably and you had to resist the urge to hold him down, doing so would only hurt him more. Still, it was hard to watch and you could feel tears sting the corners of your eyes. You blinked them away, this wasn’t the time to panic.

After a few moments Raphael’s convulsions stopped, “Raphael?” you chanced. When there was no response you decided to place a gentle hand on his shoulder, you almost had to pull away from the intense heat that radiated off his skin. This was all happening too soon for a mere infection. The only explanation was that the shiv must’ve been coated in something. Poison.

You glanced over at the offensive object and ran through possible poisons that would cause the reaction Raphael was having. Your head started spinning, it could be any number of things including his mutant DNA. You didn’t know where to start.

Then, as if answering your unspoken thoughts, a ringtone sounded and you fumbled at Raphael’s belt until you retrieved his Tphone. It was Donatello. You answered.

“Donatello!”

“_____?” Donatello sounded concerned, it was obvious that he wasn’t expecting to hear your voice coming through his brother’s phone.

“Raphael’s been stabbed, I think the blade was laced with some kind of poison!” you said louder than you needed to.

“What?” Donatello asked. “Alright, I’m tracking his phone, Leo and Mikey will be there soon.” He said. “If he was poisoned, I‘ll need samples from the blade in order to create an antidote.” With the help of Donatello’s instructions and a handy app on Raphael’s phone you managed to send the samples quickly. You ended the phone conversation so that Donatello could get to work and turned your attention back to your red warrior.

Raphael’s breathing quickened and you could see a sheen of sweat coating his skin. A tightness developed in your throat. “I’m so sorry, Raphael. I never should have followed you. You wouldn’t be in this mess if you didn’t have to save me from Grinder.” You noticed that your words seemed to calm Raphael down somewhat and you continued.

“You know, I love New York, since I was little there was always something calling me here, when I got the chance to enter this program with my mentor, I took it and never looked back.” You admitted. “and now that I’m here, it’s everything I imagined it would be.” Raphael’s head relaxed into your lap and your fingers came to rest on his smooth forehead.

“Except…I miss the stars.” You said. “Where I used to live you could see millions of them. Looking up at them always made my problems seem so small. It would remind me that it is okay to live my life because I am here for a reason, that I actually do belong here, I guess that sounds stupid, huh?” a sad smile tugged at the corner of your mouth. You’d give anything for him to give you a sarcastic comment right now.

“Over there!” you recognized Michelangelo’s voice and waved the two turtles over. Mikey fell down to one knee at your side, his baby blues offering you a small bit of relief.

* * *

**000 later 000**

* * *

 

You removed a warm cloth from Raphael’s forehead and dipped in in a bucket of cool water, ringing it out you placed it back on his forehead. Thanks to Donatello’s antidote, Raphael’s fever was manageable. He would be fine. Sighing, you sat down on the floor next to Raphael and kept a close eye on him.

Something cool nudged at your ankle and you looked down to see a Spike staring up at you. And if you weren’t mistaken you could swear that his eyes were filled with worry. “He’ll be okay.” You said, more so to convince yourself than Spike.

You took Raphael’s hand in yours, the steady rise and fall of his chest lulling you to sleep. Your eyelids grew heavy, in all the chaos you didn’t notice how tired you were…

When you woke up, you discovered that Raphael’s bed was empty, except for Spike, who was now curled up on Raphael’s pillow. You shot up, knocking he bed so violently that Spike lifted his head to see what was wrong. He gave you a look before laying his head back down.

You decided to search for Raphael and exited the room. From the living room, you could the remains of a heated exchange between Raphael and Leonardo.

“Casey came to the lair when you didn’t meet up with him. He figured something happened to you and he spilled the beans.” Leonardo said.

“Leo, I’m not in the mood for a lecture right now.” Raphael said, pinching the bridge of his beak in a manner that told you of his impending headache.

“That’s too bad.” Leonardo said. “You went to the warehouse, anyway? You can’t take on that many guys. What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking that some of us have a responsibility to keep this city safe. And if that ain’t you then it’s gotta be me.” Raphael challenged.

“And what about ______?”

“Like I knew they were following me.” Raphael said.

“That isn’t the point.” Leonardo countered.

“I protected _______, didn’t I? I’m even teaching _____ self-defense.” Raphael said.

“I’m sorry, what?” Leonardo’s voice was straining now. “And having _____ get the crap beat out of them by a bunch of gang members is your crash course?”

“No.”

“______ could have been killed.”

“You think I don’t I know that?” Raphael said, the slight quiver in his voice letting you know how guilty he felt.

“When you are on your own you can act as reckless and stupid as you want.” Continued Leonardo, “But when there are other people involved you need to stop and think about them.”

“I know what I’m doing.” Raphael said.

“Then act like it.” Leonardo said, bumping Raphael in the shoulder before stalking in your direction. Raphael clenched a fist and headed in the other direction, toward Donatello’s lab.

Leonardo entered the hall meeting your eye as he did, unfazed by the fact that you were eavesdropping. Or maybe he wanted you to hear. Still, you felt shame at being caught and were glad when the blue-banded turtle entered his room.

You couldn’t worry about Leonardo at the moment, right now, you had to talk to Raphael, apologize for getting him hurt and thank him for saving your life.

You entered the lab but there was no sign of Raphael, or Donatello for that matter. You wandered a little deeper and caught slight of the Shellraiser. Thrown together with crude parts and graffiti, it was the single most badass thing you’d ever seen.

That is until, your journey brought you to the back to of the subway car where you saw a pristine cherry-red motorcycle.

You wandered over to it and caught your reflection in the paint, there were flecks of silver glitter that sparkled as you studied its awesome craftsmanship. You’d always been a little fascinated by motorcycles and how freeing it must feel to zip past cars in traffic.

The bike seemed to be put together by salvaged parts too but, unlike the Shellraiser, with style rather than practicality in mind. You couldn’t resist any longer, you gently ran your hand along the smooth red paint and shining chrome.

“That’s a good way to lose a hand.” You pulled your hand back at Raphael’s dangerous tone. “What, you didn’t get enough of a beat down last night?” He asked.

“My bad.” You said. “I was just looking at it. It’s nice. Did you build it yourself?”

“Yep, from the ground up.” Raphael said. “When I am on the road nothing matters, it feels like I can keep driving forever. Nothing to hold me back.”

“You think your family holds you back?”

“No, not exactly.” He trailed off. “Look, I love my family, but they’re just okay with the hand we’ve been dealt. They’re okay with hiding underground for, probably, the rest of our lives. We’re turtles, do you know how long we live?” he asked, you shook your head. “A long-ass time. I’m not good with staying like this forever.”

“Raphael…” you started but trailed off when he handed you his helmet. “Seriously?” you looked at him with wide eyes, a combination of fear and excitement tore through you. He nodded and you took the helmet and put it on. Raphael slid onto his bike and you followed him.

“Hold on.” He said and you timidly placed your hands on the back of his carapace. He let out a sound of annoyance and grabbed your wrists, wrapping your arms around his waist as far as they would go. And, though you were wearing a helmet you felt warm at the contact.

He started the bike and took off through the subway tunnel. The vibration of the bike made your heart race, not to mention you were very aware of the way Raphael was breathing. You could tell that he was happy. Then you came to the surface, the fresh air hit you in refreshing waves. It was invigorating.

Raphael tore through the city, it was empty but in the distance you could hear party goers and the music of the streets. When you reached the outskirts of the city, Raphael parked his bike and shook your hands from his body. You pulled back, aware now of how stiff you’d become.

“Where are we?” you asked, the New York skyline seemed so distant now.

“You’ll see, come on.” You followed Raphael until he came to a stop and pulled back a bush, revealing a lake, the stars reflected in its waters made it seem like you were standing in space.

You looked at Raphael for a moment, had he heard you talking last night?

“This is where I like to come to think. No one knows about it but me… and now, you.” Raphael said and before you could say anything he stalked toward the bank. He looked so small and lost, nothing at all like the ruthless ninja you knew him to be. You slumped to the ground, tired, defeated.

You sat next to him and curled your legs up to your chest, holding onto them as you thought of what to say to him. “Leonardo’s wrong, if it wasn’t for you would have been killed.”

“You heard us didntja?” he sighed, his pride taking a hit at the fact that you heard him being reprimanded.

“I didn’t mean to.” You said.

“Well, he’s not wrong. I put you in danger.” Raphael said. “I shouldn’t have taken that risk and I shouldn’t be teaching you how to defend yourself.”

“Are you kidding me?” you crawled in front of him to look him in the eyes, “I never felt more alive than I did in that moment. I don’t want to run when I’m scared anymore.”

“You must have taken too many blows to the head.” He said. “Do you even know what you are saying?”

“Yes.” You said. “I want you to keep training me. I want to be a fighter.”

“This is insane.” Raphael said. “Leo would kill me.”

“I don’t want to be a burden, if I can fight too then that’s less work you have to do to protect me. You said it yourself, everyone should have a basic knowledge of self-defense. And besides, what Leo doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

“I don’t know which one of us is the bad influence on who here.” He said with a cheeky grin. “Alright, little ninja, you’re on.”

“Yes!” you gave a fist pump.

Suddenly, he grabbed your fist and yanked you closer, you could feel his warm breath on your skin, his spicy scent enveloping you. “This isn’t a game. I’m going to work your body in ways you’ve never experienced and I won’t let you quit. You better be sure you are ready for this.”

“More than ever, I want to do more than survive an attack.” You said and Raphael released you, nodding in acceptance.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed the prologue and if you are so inclined, please feed me comments. 
> 
> Thanks and to get story updates and ask me questions follow me on that there social media.   
> Instagram: e.rose.grams  
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